April 19, 2019
by Karim Juan
Commissioner
San Ignacio
The National Elite Basketball League (NEBL) will tip off its playoffs next weekend in a best-of-three semi-final series. Three of the four playoff teams will be entering the playoffs after losing their last regular season game. The 2 winners will then advance to a best-of-five series for the finals.
Defenders topple Hurricanes as Darwin “Puppy” Leslie suited up for his last NEBL game
On Wednesday night Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes hosted their final regular season game versus their city rivals, Belize City Defenders at the Belize Civic Center. This game was simply of positioning for the Hurricanes going into the playoffs, while Defenders had nothing to lose since they were already eliminated from playoff contention. Hurricanes rested their starters for this game, but they were still able to take a 23 – 20 lead at the end of the first quarter. However, Defenders were able to turn the tables going into intermission with a 40 – 35 point lead that they never relinquished. At the end of the third quarter the lead ballooned to 20 points, 65 – 45, where Defenders sealed the 90 – 83 victory. Defenders were led by Nigel Jones who finished with 26 points and 8 rebounds while Mykiel Tzul tallied 15 points and 3 boards. Farron Louriano registered a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds while Darwin “Puppy” Leslie finished with 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal in his last NEBL game of his career. Tyrie Orosco and Keith Acosta were the top scorers for Hurricanes, netting 17 points each while Raheem Thurton and Akeem Trapp tallied 16 and 10 points respectively.
San Pedro finishes regular season on 5 game winning streak
San Pedro Tiger Sharks travelled out west to take on the #1 seed, Verdes, in the final game of the regular season with no playoff implications. Verdes rested most of their starters but the bench was able to go into half time with a 40 – 39 lead. However, in the second half San Pedro Tiger Sharks took control of the game winning 84 – 63. San Pedro Tiger Sharks was led by Jihad Wright who had the game high with 18 points while Martevious Adams tallied 16 points and 9 rebounds. Francis Arana netted 11 points to go with 6 dimes and 5 rebounds while Douglas Valley finished with 10 points and Kurt “Chengo” Burgess grabbed 11 rebounds. Rookie Kyron “Tut” Molina was the top scorer for Verdes as he knotted his first career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds while Travis Lennan and Andrew Ortiz chipped in with 11 points each.
Playoff Matchups
Verdes (#1) will be going up against Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes in the semi-finals where Verdes swept the 2 game regular season series. Verdes defeated Hurricanes at the Civic Center 76 – 65 in the earlier part of the season while winning by almost the same score at home at the SHC auditorium 76 – 64. The average margin of victory was 10.5 points.
Griga Dream Ballers (#2) will be hosting San Pedro Tiger Sharks (#3) in the first round. Griga also swept the two game regular season series against San Pedro Tiger Sharks, defeating them on the island 86 – 78 and winning in Dangriga 79 – 66. The average margin of victory was also 10.5 points.
Below are the standings at the end of the regular season.
| Rank | Team | Games Played | Wins | Losses | Points |
| 1 | Verdes | 12 | 10 | 2 | 22 |
| 2 | Griga Dream Ballers | 12 | 8 | 4 | 20 |
| 3 | San Pedro Tiger Sharks | 12 | 8 | 4 | 20 |
| 4 | Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes | 12 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
| 5 | Belize City Defenders | 12 | 5 | 7 | 17 |
| 6 | Belmopan Bandits | 12 | 3 | 9 | 15 |
| 7 | Orange Walk Running Rebels | 12 | 2 | 10 | 14 |
All scores, standings, player statistic and team statistic can be found on our webpage at neblbelize.com
Below is the schedule for the upcoming playoffs.
Friday, April 26 at 9:00 p.m.: Verdes (#1) vs. Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes (#4) at the Sacred Heart
College Auditorium in San Ignacio Town
Friday, April 26 at 9:00 p.m.: Griga Dream Ballers (#2) vs. San Pedro Tiger Sharks (#3) at the Russel
Chiste Garcia Auditorium in Dangriga Town
Friday, May 3 at 9:00 p.m.: Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes (#4) vs. Verdes (#1) at the Belize Civic
Center
Saturday, May 4 at 9:00 p.m.: San Pedro Tiger Sharks (#3) vs. Griga Dream Ballers (#2) at the San Pedro
High School in San Pedro Town
If a game 3 is necessary, below is the schedule.
Friday, May 10 at 9:00 p.m.: Verdes (#1) vs. Mirage/Smart Belize Hurricanes (#4) at the Sacred Heart
College Auditorium in San Ignacio Town
Saturday, May 11 at 9:00 p.m.: Griga Dream Ballers (#2) vs. San Pedro Tiger Sharks (#3) at the Russel
Chiste Garcia Auditorium in Dangriga Town