By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

ROMAD Dean controlled the boards for Team Bahamas all tournament and came up with his most timely offensive rebound and score to lift the team to a bronze medal at the FIBA Centrobasket Under-17 Championship for Men.

With the win, the Bahamas will also advance to the 2020 FIBA U-18 Tournament of the Americas. The top four teams at the Tournament of the Americas will advance to the subsequent U-19 Basketball World Cup.

Dean rebounded a missed Deyton Albury layup and followed with a dunk that gave the Bahamas an 85-83 win over the Dominican Republic yesterday at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum.

The DR’s Jean Montero missed a three-pointer as time expired as the Bahamas held on for the bronze medal.

Dean finished with a double-double - 18 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.

Albury led Team Bahamas with 28 points, six assists and four steals - all team highs. Malik Joseph finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, Tyler Pinder scored 12 (4 - 8 from three-point range), while Chester McPhee finished with eight points and nine rebounds.

Montero led the Dominican Republic with a game-high 29 points and Koby Brea scored 14.

The Bahamas led by as much as nine in the fourth quarter when Pinder made a three to give the team a 73-64 lead with 7:28 left to play. The DR responded with back-to-back threes from Montero and Brea as a part of an 8-0 run to come within one (75-74).

The game was tied at 77 and 79 before Pinder gave the Bahamas the lead with another three pointer, 82-79 with 3:02 left to play. Following a DR score, Malik Joseph split a pair at the line to give the Bahamas an 83-81 lead.

Montero tied the game at 83 with his layup with 15 seconds left to play, setting the stage for Dean’s heroics. The DR led 19-18 at the end of the first quarter but the Bahamas led 41-40 into the half and 66-59 headed into the fourth quarter.

The Bahamas opened the tournament with a 75-70 loss to host country, Puerto Rico. They followed with an 86-57 win over El Salvador and an 89-76 win over the US Virgin Islands to advance to the semi-finals. They suffered a 64-48 loss to Mexico in the semi-finals.

Albury led the team in scoring at 19.4 points per game while Dean averaged a double-double with 14.2 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. Oswald Meadows led the team in assists at four per game, while Albury also led the team in steals at 3.4 per game and Pinder was the top three-point shooter at 48.3 per cent.