27 November 2007
SEYCHELLES : HotShots sweep series to retain title
THEY did not bring the brooms with them to the Palais des Sports on Sunday but they swept Anse Etoile Stars to retain the Seychelles Basketball Federation (SBF) Cup. HotShots not only kept the trophy they won for the first time last year, but they did so in style.
HOTSHOTS … second SBF Cup title in two years
Coach Philip Arissol’s team did what probably no other local or foreign team have done before against the Stars, keeping them at bay for one whole quarter and forcing them to fire blanks when scoring 23 points of their own. This happened in the second quarter of Sunday’s game two which they won 71-44 after having edged the Stars 51-49 in game one played last Saturday.
Asked how it was possible to blank the experienced Stars and then score 23 points against them, coach Arissol replied:
“What, we scored 23 points? I knew they did not score but I did not take statistics of the number of points we scored in the second quarter. After not playing quite well in the game-one win, I asked my players to step up our defence and not to give Anse Etoile Stars’ good ball handlers time to dwell on the ball. The tactic worked. They turned the ball over and we scored.”
After being outscored 8-15 in the first quarter, HotShots took the shine off the Stars in the second 10-minute spell, scoring 23 points while coach Michel Malbrook’s team failed to score a single point.
Many expected the Stars to storm back like they’ve done before even when undermanned, but this time wasn’t to be the case. Probably it wasn’t their day! Coach Malbrook also conceded defeat with almost three minutes left on the clock as he just watched his players play.
With former Seychelles point guard Jenita Toussaint showing that she can still shoot from long range, scoring six treys for a game-high 26 points, Anse Boileau-based HotShots won the third and fourth quarters 13-17 and 16-23 for a series-clinching 71-44 win.
Centre and Seychelles international volleyballer Tina Agathine added 23 points, while Samia Asba was HotShots’ third player scoring in double figures with 12 points.
Veteran Simone Malbrook led the Stars in scoring with 13 points.
“Retaining the SBF Cup is a big achievement. We’ve been training hard and played consistent basketball over the past two years and we even challenged Anse Etoile Stars for the league crown. I thank all my players for their commitment to the game,” said coach Arissol to Sports Nation.
It is to note that Hot Shots are to leave the country on Saturday December 1 for Mauritius where they will play three friendly matches.
Omony (with ball) rises over the Premium Cobras defenceMeanwhile, the men’s SBF Cup title decider will be played on Sunday December 2 after Men’s division 1A champs PLS Hawks reached the century mark and tied the best-of-three series at 1-1 by pounding Premium Cobras 102-64 on Sunday.
After losing game one 68-72, PLS Hawks, whose coach Tony Juliette and centre Rodney Lozé were hit with two-match bans three hours before the start of Sunday’s match for fighting, got a game-high 36 points from Ugandan Stephen Omony in their big win.
Neddy ‘Oye’ Fanchette added 22 points, while Barry Baron made a 12-point contribution.
Premium Cobras were without Nigerian power forward Reuben Kolawole, who is serving a two-match suspension after receiving a technical foul for indecent gesture in the game-one win.
On Sunday, the Cobras also lost Tanzanian Abdallah ‘Dulla’ Ramadhan who was hit with two unsportsmanlike fouls while Francis ‘Toy’ Herminie and Biko Biong fouled out.
……………
Spotlight on Tina Agathine
A tower of strength for HotShots and Arsu
SHE is tall and stands at 1.82 metres, making her a tower of strength for her teams. A Seychelles international volleyballer and a member of the Arsu volleyball team, Tina Agathine joined the HotShots basketball team in 2002, winning the League title in her first year. She’s now won the SBF Cup twice in 2006 and 2007.
With Arsu, whom she joined when aged 17 in 1999, Agathine has won almost everything - the Women’s Division One league title seven times, the SVF Cup, the SVF Shield and the Indian Ocean Club Championship on two occasions in 2002 and 2003. She missed a third title and the team’s fifth success in the competition played in Reunion in January this year.
How can she cope practicing these two sports and which one does she likes best?
“I like both volleyball and basketball. I’m a completely different individual when on the court performing the two sports which have almost nothing in relation. I play on two good teams. On the HotShots basketball team, there is a family atmosphere as we all come from Anse Boileau. This is different with the Arsu volleyball team based in Anse Royale. The Arsu volleyballers are more mature and I learn a lot from them. The good thing is that players on both teams are united as a group,” said Agathine, who has a three-year-old son named Darren.
Already a member of the Seychelles volleyball team, Agathine was called to the country’s basketball pre-selection. As she could not play for both selections, she chose to play with the country’s volleyball team and it has been a wise decision for she won the African Nations Cup gold medal in Port Harcourt, Nigeria in 2001, the Indian Ocean Islands Games (IOIG) gold medal in 2003 in Mauritius, and the IOIG silver medal in 2007 in Madagascar.
What a nice collection of titles for a 25-year-old who has vowed to continue practicing both sports for as long as she can!
Surely Arsu aren’t ready to lose their middle blocker just like HotShots who know that Agathine brings a lot to their game, bringing down countless offensive and defensive rebounds and scoring in double figures in almost every match. In fact, Agathine has scored the most points – a career-high 52 points - by a female player this season and that was against Cadettes in a 101-7 league win.
G. G.
HOTSHOTS … second SBF Cup title in two years
Coach Philip Arissol’s team did what probably no other local or foreign team have done before against the Stars, keeping them at bay for one whole quarter and forcing them to fire blanks when scoring 23 points of their own. This happened in the second quarter of Sunday’s game two which they won 71-44 after having edged the Stars 51-49 in game one played last Saturday.
Asked how it was possible to blank the experienced Stars and then score 23 points against them, coach Arissol replied:
“What, we scored 23 points? I knew they did not score but I did not take statistics of the number of points we scored in the second quarter. After not playing quite well in the game-one win, I asked my players to step up our defence and not to give Anse Etoile Stars’ good ball handlers time to dwell on the ball. The tactic worked. They turned the ball over and we scored.”
After being outscored 8-15 in the first quarter, HotShots took the shine off the Stars in the second 10-minute spell, scoring 23 points while coach Michel Malbrook’s team failed to score a single point.
Many expected the Stars to storm back like they’ve done before even when undermanned, but this time wasn’t to be the case. Probably it wasn’t their day! Coach Malbrook also conceded defeat with almost three minutes left on the clock as he just watched his players play.
With former Seychelles point guard Jenita Toussaint showing that she can still shoot from long range, scoring six treys for a game-high 26 points, Anse Boileau-based HotShots won the third and fourth quarters 13-17 and 16-23 for a series-clinching 71-44 win.
Centre and Seychelles international volleyballer Tina Agathine added 23 points, while Samia Asba was HotShots’ third player scoring in double figures with 12 points.
Veteran Simone Malbrook led the Stars in scoring with 13 points.
“Retaining the SBF Cup is a big achievement. We’ve been training hard and played consistent basketball over the past two years and we even challenged Anse Etoile Stars for the league crown. I thank all my players for their commitment to the game,” said coach Arissol to Sports Nation.
It is to note that Hot Shots are to leave the country on Saturday December 1 for Mauritius where they will play three friendly matches.
Omony (with ball) rises over the Premium Cobras defenceMeanwhile, the men’s SBF Cup title decider will be played on Sunday December 2 after Men’s division 1A champs PLS Hawks reached the century mark and tied the best-of-three series at 1-1 by pounding Premium Cobras 102-64 on Sunday.
After losing game one 68-72, PLS Hawks, whose coach Tony Juliette and centre Rodney Lozé were hit with two-match bans three hours before the start of Sunday’s match for fighting, got a game-high 36 points from Ugandan Stephen Omony in their big win.
Neddy ‘Oye’ Fanchette added 22 points, while Barry Baron made a 12-point contribution.
Premium Cobras were without Nigerian power forward Reuben Kolawole, who is serving a two-match suspension after receiving a technical foul for indecent gesture in the game-one win.
On Sunday, the Cobras also lost Tanzanian Abdallah ‘Dulla’ Ramadhan who was hit with two unsportsmanlike fouls while Francis ‘Toy’ Herminie and Biko Biong fouled out.
……………
Spotlight on Tina Agathine
A tower of strength for HotShots and Arsu
SHE is tall and stands at 1.82 metres, making her a tower of strength for her teams. A Seychelles international volleyballer and a member of the Arsu volleyball team, Tina Agathine joined the HotShots basketball team in 2002, winning the League title in her first year. She’s now won the SBF Cup twice in 2006 and 2007.
With Arsu, whom she joined when aged 17 in 1999, Agathine has won almost everything - the Women’s Division One league title seven times, the SVF Cup, the SVF Shield and the Indian Ocean Club Championship on two occasions in 2002 and 2003. She missed a third title and the team’s fifth success in the competition played in Reunion in January this year.
How can she cope practicing these two sports and which one does she likes best?
“I like both volleyball and basketball. I’m a completely different individual when on the court performing the two sports which have almost nothing in relation. I play on two good teams. On the HotShots basketball team, there is a family atmosphere as we all come from Anse Boileau. This is different with the Arsu volleyball team based in Anse Royale. The Arsu volleyballers are more mature and I learn a lot from them. The good thing is that players on both teams are united as a group,” said Agathine, who has a three-year-old son named Darren.
Already a member of the Seychelles volleyball team, Agathine was called to the country’s basketball pre-selection. As she could not play for both selections, she chose to play with the country’s volleyball team and it has been a wise decision for she won the African Nations Cup gold medal in Port Harcourt, Nigeria in 2001, the Indian Ocean Islands Games (IOIG) gold medal in 2003 in Mauritius, and the IOIG silver medal in 2007 in Madagascar.
What a nice collection of titles for a 25-year-old who has vowed to continue practicing both sports for as long as she can!
Surely Arsu aren’t ready to lose their middle blocker just like HotShots who know that Agathine brings a lot to their game, bringing down countless offensive and defensive rebounds and scoring in double figures in almost every match. In fact, Agathine has scored the most points – a career-high 52 points - by a female player this season and that was against Cadettes in a 101-7 league win.
G. G.
# posted by afrbk : 14:30
