GTSC claims Digicel title with overtime win

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Jorge Ebanks (GTSC) gets fouled by Gregory Miller (Blazers).



George Town Sports Club claimed an overtime win against Esso Blazers in Game 2 of the best of three finals series of the Digicel National League to claim the title.
It could however have turned out very differently for the two teams.

Blazers had a tough time at the beginning of the game, and soon found themselves well down on GTSC. The team then managed to launch an impressive fight back, which soon had them within striking distance of their opponents. And strike they did, claiming the lead and at one stage managing to build up a comfortable cushion over George Town.

It was especially at the start of the final quarter that Blazers took the fight to their opponents, as they stretched out their lead through a period of very fast-paced play in the first couple of minutes of the half. Although it looked as though they could not possibly keep up their unbelievable work-rate, the team kept on pushing.

If there is one thing George Town is known for, it is their fighting spirit, and this certainly came to the fore during the last part of the final quarter. Although they were well down, they did not give up for a moment, and slowly but surely dragged themselves ever closer to Blazers' total.

With only eight seconds remaining on the game clock, Blazers were up by only two points, and after a foul on George Town, Phillip Barnes stepped up to the line to take the shots.

Although he could only make one of his two shots, it brought GTSC within one point of forcing overtime. At the restart, Blazers turned the ball over, allowing GTSC another chance at attack. Although George Town could not score, they were fouled by Blazers, and Barnes stepped up to the free-throw line once more.

He missed his first attempt, but remained cool and made the second to level the game.

The buzzer went before either team could score, resulting in overtime.

In overtime, GTSC ran rings around Blazers, who seemed to have pinned all their hopes on claiming the game in regular time. Handing GTSC the draw just seemed too much for the Blazers players as they were clearly out of sorts in overtime that seemed more like the Jorge Ebanks and Phillip Barnes show than anything else.

In fact, GTSC's resurrection during the latter part of the season can be attributed to the return of their two star players from college. After the game, Ebanks and Barnes said that the main aim of their return home was to help the team to the title. They certainly succeeded, bringing a very high level of play to the local basketball courts.

A dejected Shawn Pitterson, coach of Esso Blazers, was clearly saddened that his team had not been able to force Game 3, even though they came ever so close. However, with the progress the team has made during this season, they will certainly be a team to watch next time around.

eugene@caymannetnews.com

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