Barbados senior men’s Basketball team selected

A new system and loads of new faces will be the feature of the Barbados senior men’s Basketball team which was announced on Friday by the Barbados Amateur Basketball Association (BABA).

The announcement was made after the team’s practice session at the Barbados Community College and the team is slated to head to Chile next month. Head coach Devan Blair said that it is not easy when they only had two weeks to prepare from selecting a team and putting in the offense and defense. He added they will be coming up against teams which have played together, but he had high praise for everyone who tried out for the squad as they came in fit and ready to play.

Blair said the players on the final team all earned their spot and they thought this roster was a good blend of the new and experienced.

The team is made up of four players selected from the local domestic league while the others are playing overseas.

The four local players are Deroni Hurley, Keefe Birkette, Akeem Marsh and Kyrone Alexander. Alexander will be heading off to South Shore High where he will continue his education and Basketball.

Veteran ball handler Andre Lockhart returns to the team from the United Kingdom and newcomer Chikosi Boardi is also returning from the UK where he plays for London Basketball Academy.

The rest of the team includes Kiserian Adams and Kemar Benn of Baton Rouge Community College, Justin Pile of Oklahoma Panhandle State University, Kyrone Alexander of South Shore High, Tanner Thomas of Sacred Heart University, Carl Thorpe Jr of Western Nebraska College, and Mahkaya Moore of Bishop Loughlin HS.

The Head coach is Blair and the assistant coach is Charles Vanderpool. The manager is Shakira Shorey and the special assistant to the coach is Harley Borish.

Blair will be looking for the team to run from jump ball to the final whistle as they bring a fast-paced style of play to the Bajan ballers.

According to President of the BABA, Francis Williams, this tournament has been one of the more difficult ones to pull off, though they have not completed the task yet.

Williams said that the late notice which they received plus the high cost it will take to get the team there to compete has stretched the Association. Williams outlined some of the challenges which they faced in the lead up to the final team selection, which included the short time to prepare, the logistics of getting the players together and finding a way to select the team.

With the indoor facilities unavailable during the month of May, finding a place to play was also a challenge.

Despite this, he was happy that they could navigate all these challenges and found their final 12 players.

Barbados is scheduled to take on Paraguay in their first match on July 23rd, and then Chile and Ecudaor on July 24th and 25th. (CG)