The National Gymnasium on Mandela Avenue will be the battleground on Thursday night when the fate of the several high profile community teams will be decided in the final group stage round of the inaugural Rio Indoor Streetball Championship.
The opening match will witness Broad Street against Ol Skool Ballers at 19:30h. A win for Broad Street will seal their place in the knockout round, while a victory for Ol Skool Ballers would keep their chances alive of progressing as a third placed unit.
In the second match from 20:00h, undefeated Showstoppers from West Demerara face-off with Stabroek Ballers, another side who are desperately in need of a positive result. The Avocado Ballers and Beterverwagting [BV] clash at 20:30h will be an intriguing affair as both teams are currently on three points. A win for either seals their place in the knockout stage.
Unbeaten Leopold Street will take the stage against Tiger Bay from 21:00h, with the latter searching for their first win in their bid to qualify for the next round. Next on the list will be Future Stars and Albouystown-A from 21:30h. This match mirrors the Avocado Ballers and BV encounter as a victory seals their berth to the elimination round.
Finally, at 22:00h tournament favourite Bent Street battles newcomer LA Ballers, who must win to stand a chance of progressing from the group stage.
According to an official release from the tournament coordinators, Three Peat Promotions, “The final night is expected to be an epic and grueling showcase of talent and skills. Many of the teams are still battling for a place in the elimination round so effectively tonight is the start of the knockout stage. Effectively eight teams will depart the tournament following the conclusion of the night, which adds to the drama of the tournament. The teams have performed admirably and have certainly enthralled and entertained the fans who have supported the event since its inception. Fans can expect another wonderful night of action.”
The correspondence further said, “We are also thankful to the Guyana Police Force who have performed splendidly in carrying out their duties to ensure that the tournament has been incident free. We are expected another banner night heading into what promises to be a monumental knockout round as the teams battle for an historic first prize of $1,000,000.”
