Ravens triumph at Independence 3×3 tournament

The Ravens basketball team pulled off a stellar, unbeaten run on Sunday to be crowned champions of the Guyana Basketball Federation’s 3×3 60th Independence tournament at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH), Homestretch Avenue.
The Ravens, comprising Nikkoloi Smith, Jude Corlette, Dominic Vincente and Alroy Nurse, started their campaign with a 14-8 victory over Berbice in the preliminary round. Other preliminary victories saw them getting the better of Raiders 21-5, Victory Valley Royals 11-9, and Jets 9-8.
In the semi-finals, the Ravens enjoyed a comprehensive 21-12 win against Block 22 Flames.
Their final opponents, the Eagles, featuring Denzel Ross, Gevon Ross, Hullman Bovell and Michael Turner, scripted a similar unbeaten run towards the final showdown. In the preliminaries, Eagles outlasted Pacesetters 15-6, SYG Squad 10-8, and Flames 7-4. In the semi-finals, the Eagles came out on top of the Victory Valley Royals in a nail-biting 21-19 overtime encounter.

In the final, Ravens made light work of their opponents, sealing the $300,000 grand prize with a 21-14 victory.
While the Eagles settled for the $200,000 second-place prize, the Victory Valley Royals were on the receiving end of a $100,000 reward for being the tournament’s third-place finisher.
In addition, Nikkoloi Smith, who was also the tournament’s highest individual scorer, was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP).
The GBF’s 3×3 Independence competition formed part of a massive sports festival, powered by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS) in observance of Guyana’s Independence Diamond Jubilee celebrations.