By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

They fell short of stopping St Augustine’s College Big Red Machine’s bid to regain their Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools (BAISS) junior boys’ basketball title, but the Queen’s College Comets made sure that the St John’s Giants didn’t ruin their parade as they retained their senior boys’ title.

On Monday night at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium after the Comets suffered a heartbreaking 45-42 defeat at the hands of SAC’s junior boys, Queen’s College knocked off St John’s 61-53 to join the rest of the divisions as they pulled off two-game sweeps in their respective best-of-three championship series.

With their back-to-back feat, the Comets have now solidified themselves as the No.1 team in the BAISS and nobody was more elated about the performance than head coach Dwayne Smith as they got revenge on the Giants when it counted the most.

“My boys worked hard the whole season leading up to the championship,” Smith said. “We tried to go undefeated, but fell short against St John’s on December 4 when they beat us at home. The boys regrouped, we went to Atlanta where we won the tournament and they came back focused to get to the championship and win it.

“Fortunately for us, we played St John’s and after that loss that sent us into a whirlwind, we fought hard and together to pull this one off.”

Having had some heated and intense match-ups with the Giants in the past, Smith said they didn’t take their opponents for granted and were prepared to answer everything that they threw at them.

“I said it was about talent, but we felt we were the most talented team all year long,” he said. “It was who wanted it more and the team that was more focused at the end. I think that was our team and that was why I think we came out victorious in the long run.”

Not only did they win, but they repeated as champions, something that the Comets have never been able to do in the past.

“It’s a good feeling to be back-to-back champions,” Smith said. “Years ago, you could never mention QC in any sport but swimming and soccer. But now when you mention QC in basketball, people are shocked. But that just comes from the time and effort that the coaches, the administration and the parents put into our programme.

“The players are now believing in themselves and the administrators are backing us in everything that we do. So that has been a big plus for us.”

Notwithstanding those attributes, Smith said they could not have done it without the cast of players that they have assembled over the last few years.

“My best player, Lerecus Armbrister, showed why he’s the best high school player in the country,” Smith said. “My centre, D’Mitry Charlton, although he wasn’t in the line-up in the last game, he really set the tone in the championship with his rebounding and we also had Ellison Greenslade, one of our top athletes, who took it to another level along with our point guard, Rashad Watson, who controlled the tempo of the game.

“But I also want to give it to my bench, Philip McKenzie, Cory Deveaux, Kevin Miller and Julius Nottage. They really came up and gave us that extra boost that we needed to get through at the end.”

Smith, who also coached the junior boys’ team, said they intend to host a party for their basketball teams and use their performances as a motivation for the track team going into the BAISS track and field championships next month when the Comets will try to stop the Big Red Machine’s bid for their 26th straight title.

The Comets have been knocking on the door for the past few years, but after they turned in a strong performance at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National High School Relays, Queen’s College is hoping that this will be the year for them to dethrone St Augustine’s College.

“We need that extra boost going into track and field to try and take down the Big Red Machine,” he said. “Like I told the track and field athletes, in order for you to beat a team, you have to first respect the team for what they did. They have won it for a long time, so don’t just think that you can go in there and win.

“You have to work as hard as them and even harder in order to win. But I think we have set the tone for the track and field team, so we are looking for some good things from them.”

Like he did last year, Smith said he intends to enrol all of his players in his Huskies Eight Ballers Club that are all set to begin training in April at Queen’s College 9am to noon on Saturdays.

And like he did last year, Smith said he intends to take them to the United States during the summer with the hopes of helping some of them secure athletic scholarships.

But for now, it’s time for the Comets to celebrate. Queen’s College, according to Smith, is going to have a big party, but he hopes that it can be extended after their showing in track and field.