FRIARS MAINTAIN TOP SEED AFTER CUTTING DOWN PANTHERS

By Paradis Jolie Fejerang

Last week, the Guam High Panthers and FD Friars faced off for the most anticipated basketball matchup of the 2024 IIAAG Boys Basketball League season and ended with a Friar win of 18 points over their opponents. Friday night, the two schools met back up with the Panthers focused on proving themselves as better then their adversaries, but ultimately failing 72-56.

The proof of the Panther’s hunger for the win was visible from the start of the game. Guam High’s standout, Cameron Brantley, worked hard on the court as he carried his team through an impressive first quarter.

With the rest of the smaller team keeping their cool against formidable competition, Brantley was not on a solo mission, but being greatly supported by teammates such as the Panther’s Zarius Ward in ensuring the collective goal to topple the opposition was met.

With the first quarter over and Guam High up, FD needed to start getting their heads in the game. Seeming as though their wins for the season have caught them taking it easy, Friar Jamel Romero shares that his team’s mentality needed to be set straight upon returning onto the court for the second quarter since they had been more intense during practices in preparation for today.

“We just had to get our mindset right and focus on getting the ball up as a team,” says Romero.

A frontman of FD’s season thus far, Romero had an especially spotlit game as he not only scored the most points of the game, but surpassed the highest number of individual points per last week’s match against the Panthers as well.

With a personal score of 21 under his name for the night, Romero breezed to the top scorer’s spot towards the latter half of the game as the difference in the score started growing.

“It felt good,” Romero nods in response to the gain in points with the help of his teammates. “We just had to push the tempo up and play together as a team.”

The next IIAAG basketball games will take place on February 20, Tuesday. The St. Paul Warriors will face the Friars on their home court in the Phoenix Center at 5:30 pm. Meanwhile, the Panthers will travel down to the Notre Dame court also with 5:30 pm game start time. A bit later in the day, the Harvest Eagles will head to upper Tumon to take on St. John’s Knights at 6 pm.