Manchester, Herbert Morrison in do or die

It’s do or die in the ISSA Schoolboy Rural Basketball Under-16 finals as defending champions Manchester High School and Herbert Morrison Technical High School collide in a decisive Game Three today to determine this year’s champion.

The best-of-three series is locked at 1-1 after Manchester High evened things up last week with a hard-fought win on their home court in the rural competition.

Now, with the title on the line, Manchester will once again try to make the best of home-court advantage in front of what is expected to be an energetic grouping of their fans.

Herbert Morrison, meanwhile, suffered their first loss of the season in Game Two, but will be eager to rebound in the series decider. The Montego Bay-based team will be aiming to spoil the champions’ plans and walk away with the under-16 title.

With both teams having lost just once all season, today’s clash promises to be a thrilling showdown as two evenly matched sides battle for supremacy in the ISSA rural under-16 championship.

Manchester edged Herbert Morrison 56-45 through Wasim Windett to tie the series. Windett scored 21 points, pulled down three rebounds, had five steals and three assists.

Levar Rose, coach of Herbert Morrison said the team needs to remain disciplined and focused for a chance to win it all.

“This is a big moment for us and every player out there has to play their role and execute. All the team has to do is be consistent. We really wanted to end the season undefeated, but now we have to ensure we are on our A game today,” said Rose.

At 3:45 p.m., Manchester’s under-19s will face first-time finalists Holmwood.

Damon Sullivan, coach of Manchester, said the game should bring excitment, especially against familiar foes.

“It should be very similar to an NBA play-off game. We have played them three times already, so both teams know each other. I know Holmwood is putting in their work and hungry for the silverware,” said Sullivan.

“For us, most of it is on the mental side and keeping them motivated. We just need to turn up and execute and close it out today,” added Sullivan.

On the brink of elimination, Andre Brown, the coach of Holmwood, said the team uses Manchester as motivation, aiming to win today’s games.

“Most of the practices, we use Manchester as a motivation. We have to stay locked in and get the title, so we’re going to take it day by day, game by game. I think we’re really motivated right now, because a lot of teams would love to be in this position where we are,” said Brown, who is confident of the team winning.

Today’s Matches

U16 - Herbert Morrison vs Manchester – 2 p.m.

U19 - Holmwood vs Manchester - 3:45 p.m.

Both games to be played at Manchester High School