BABA Presidents' Cup Finals: Burger King Clapham Bulls and City United Celtics Deadlocked at 73-73 as Playoff Series Evens Out

After a stunning shot at the buzzer by captain Joel Hunte of the 246 Mobile Shop City United Celtics, the Burger King Clapham Bulls and Celtics are tied at 73-73 with all the play for in the second leg of the BABA Presidents’ Cup finals series.

The tie at the end of a game has never been seen before in a BABA series but the decision to set the playoffs series based on aggregate has changed the dynamic. Both teams will now technically play from 0-0 on Sunday with no team having any advantage after the first leg.

Celtics did, however, have an advantage early in the game at the Barbados Community College on Friday night, leading by as much as 15 points, 30-45. Clapham made a run to end the half, closing the gap to 35-45 at halftime.

At the beginning of the second half, the Bulls coach Kelan Phillips could be heard shouting that they finally had a good start to the third quarter. Within five minutes, the score was tied at 55 and the Bulls took the lead 57-55 with 2:56 left on the clock.

City United were losing their way, looking to the referees to bail them out for not finishing plays at the hoop. Coach Charles Vanderpool called a timeout with 1:13 left in the third to rally and settle his troops. The team came out of the huddle more focused and were able to retake the lead 57-60 at the end of third.

However, simple misses at the hoop by both teams produced only four points combined from both teams in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter (61-61). The Bulls were then able to break away and score, courtesy of veteran Akeem Marsh and Antoine Winter in the middle.

Marsh finished with a team high 18 points, seven rebounds and three blocks while Winter had 14 points and eight rebounds.

Clapham crashed the boards as a team and guards Andrew Ifill and Derion Hurley also secured important offensive rebounds. Leading 67-61, the Bulls upped the defense and were able to refrain from fouling, turning defense into offense. City United stayed in the hunt but Derion Hurley hit multiple turn-around baseline jumpers.

A three-point play by Hunte and then a timely shot from the outside by Theo Greenidge took the game into the final seconds with the score reading 71-70. With the game winding down, Simeon Maynard of the Bulls drove in the lane, drawing two defenders and Ifill cut backdoor to score a tough layup, stopping the clock at 20 seconds.

There were multiple offensive rebounds and attempts by Celtics in the ensuing possession and Greenidge found Hunte with two seconds left for the shot, which he hit to tie the game 73-73, as the buzzer sounded. Many spectators were confused as to the game ending with the scores tied without the start of an overtime period and the concept of aggregate by points had to be explained.