Hits and Jams Television (HJTV) in collaboration with the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA), Courts Pacesetters Basketball Club and Lens Craft Optical yesterday officially launched their Inter-Ward Basketball Tournament at the Windjammer International Hotel in Georgetown.
Sixteen teams/wards within Georgetown and its environs will be aiming to cash in on the approximately $3.5 million basketball tournament which starts on Saturday and concludes on June 7 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
HJTV representative Simian Francis explained that his enterprise has long been associated with sports, and was now more than pleased to form an alliance with the GABA.
A representative of Lens Craft Optical, no stranger to the sponsorship of basketball, said this is a continuation of its commitment to the development of the sport.
Cary Griffith of Windjammer International said his business is aiming to take the game to another level and he is hoping that the event will be very successful and packed with competitiveness.
President of GABA Trevor Rose lauded HJTV for getting corporate Guyana on board since this has been a sore point in Guyana especially where basketball is concerned.
“It’s the ingredient that we in basketball have been looking for and I want to thank all who have come on board to make this event possible,” Rose said.
The tournament will take a knockout format and from the semi-final stage it will be configured into a two-best-in-three (first team to win two out of three games) and this will be the same for the finals.
“This will be our NBA playoffs,” tournament coordinator Bobby Cadogan said.
He spoke of the uniqueness of the inter-ward tournament, noting that although it is basketball players will not be representing clubs but the communities in which they reside.
“We are more than enthused with the response shown by the players and with this dedication there’s no doubt that the tournament will be one that you wouldn’t want to miss,” said Cadogan.
Denis Clarke, who has been assigned by the organizers to overlook the running of the tournament, said that indiscipline both on and off the court of play will not be tolerated. Nothing must tarnish the tournament or the names of the sponsors, he said, because the sport is not always fortunate to have businesses giving their full support.
Clarke’s task includes ensuring that the games start on time at 7.30 pm each day. A fine will be imposed on teams that turn up late.
Officiating, which has been a sore point in the sport recently, he said, has already been properly streamlined and Guyana’s lone FIBA-accredited referee Sherwin Henry will head the list.
The first prize is $500,000, while second place through to fourth will receive $300,000, $100,000 and $50,000 respectively along with trophies and medals.
A number of awards will also be up for grabs including for Most Valuable Player (MVP), Best Defensive Player, Best Offensive Player, Most Rebounds and Most Steals.
Statisticians will be present throughout the tournament and Clarke will also be responsible for the preservation of the data collected.
The last inter-ward tournament was played in 2007 and was won by North Ruimveldt. Stiff financial constraints forced the organizers to skip the event last year but this time around it was announced that the tournament is here to stay.
