Southern Conference teams want League extended

Southern Basketball Conference (SCB) teams are calling for an increase in the number of teams that qualify for the play-offs this season.

Eight teams usually advance to the quarter-finals after the preliminary round of games, but because there is an increase in the number of participating teams (18) this season, coupled with the fact that it is the only active league in and around the corporate area, clubs are calling for the play-offs to begin with a round of 16 instead.

"We are currently having a meeting to see if we must change the format," SBC president, Calvin Martin, told The Gleaner.

"The teams are saying that since there is no other league, it makes no sense ending the competition early," he revealed.

The preliminary round ended on Sunday, but there are outstanding games to be completed and Martin promised the play-offs should start on the seventh of this month.

Meanwhile, in games on Sunday, Delacree Park registered a major upset, scoring an exciting 78-75 win over fourth place Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) at Delacree Park.

The Daley brothers, Kevin and Howard, with 25 and 23 points, respectively, paved the way for the 11th place Delacree Park's win. The Daleys were supported by Vinton Brown with 16 points.

The JDF's Ramli Franklyn was the game's topscorer with 27 points and his best support came from Dermaine Foster, with 15 points and nine rebounds.

Delacree Park started with a bang, outscoring their opponents 24-18 in the first quarter.

The JDF continued to struggle in the second quarter with Delacree taking the stanza 17-11 to lead 41-29 at half-time.

With Howard and Kevin having their way, the home team went on to take the third period 18-16 to lead 59-47 going into the final quarter.

The JDF finally woke up in the last period of the game and launched an impressive comeback. Despite taking the quarter 28-19, it was not enough to deny Delacree their sixth win in 15 games.

Meanwhile, at Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex, Portmore Flames stopped Majesty Gardens 80-67, with 21 points and 13 rebounds from Mike Davis and 14 points from Deveraux Preston. The Flames' Kenado Smith had a game-high 30 points and Aquaie Ferguson 20 points.

In another game, EXED Heats defeated Real Lions 72-58, with 24 points and seven rounds from Cornell Grant and 20 points from Rohan Robinson. The Lions' Kemar McLeish posted a game-high 27 points, while Dimario Jackson had 16.