The Belize National Basketball team will be doing some tourism of its own as it prepares to go to Mexico on May 16th and 17th to play two return matches against the Mexican national Team Belize played Mexico last night at the City Center in our second and final home game and here's how it went.
Mexico scored the first three points of the game and never looked back. With
Kenton Paulino forced to play the point position, the Belize Team had its best shooter on the ball. But size would be the difference, and early Sonny Watson showed prowess in the paint with this athletic put back.
But while Watson soared, Mexican big man Horacio Llamas lumbered through and
just overpowered the Belizean defenders. And with uncontested open court opportunities like this Mexico shot ahead to a 12-point lead.
On the next possession, Belize's chances of recovering that took a hit when Darwin Carter was injured on this drive to the rim.
With less speed outside and no size inside, llamas continued to have his way in the middle, taking his team ahead to a 20-point lead.
As the Belize defense collapsed to help, the Mexican shooters opened up and at the end of the first quarter, Belize was down by 23. It's a deficit
the team would not overcome as the Mexicans continued to pour it on from the outside with this four point play which took the lead to 24, the largest of the game.
It was 21 at the half, but coming out of the locker room, coach Kevin Seroki was upbeat.
Kevin Seroki,
"We're going to keep being aggressive, keep going to the rims, make some shots, and we'll come out strong. Of course, we won't have Darwin the second half. It's going to hurt us a lot not having him but we'll aggressive and we'll never give up, we'll keep fighting."
And Kenton Paulino came out fighting starting with this three pointer from
NBA range. Bart Sanchez was also deadly from the outside but the Mexican giant Horacio Llamas continued to pound it inside and at the end of three Belize was down by 23 points.
In the fourth quarter, Englebert Cherrington went at Mexico's big men with moves like this. Kenton Paulino also attacked the middle on this drive to the lane, which he followed with this gorgeous spin move through the lane. Bart Sanchez filled in with this floater in the lane which brought the lead down to 15, but that came with one a half minutes left and it was too little too late for team Belize. Still even with that huge deficit, team Belize fought and scrapped to the very end and lost the game by 19.
Kenton Paulino says the officiating was an issue.
Kenton Paulino,
"It seems like every time we tried to get close, the referees made a call and so it changed the game but they played good and they played together."
Now the team must learn from that lesson as it goes into Mexico to play the return games. Paulino says he'll be there.
Kenton Paulino,
"I am glad to play for my country but it was frustrating that we weren't able to win on our home court."
Keith Swift,
Will you continue playing for Belize?
Kenton Paulino,
"Yeah I am going over to Mexico to play so yes, here on you will see me playing for Belize."
Keith Swift,
What can we expect from Mexico when we go over there?
Mexico's Assistant Coach
"We are going to continue. I think our conditioning isn't up to par so we'll continue working on our conditioning. We should do a better job in Mexico but that's going to be the key, continuing to work together as a team."
Brads Neal, National Team Manager
"It is going to be tough for us to go to Mexico in a couple weeks to win two games out there to even the score and to make matters worse they beat us by 17 points last night and 21 points tonight, that's a difficult task."
The same Belize team now plays Mexico two game on its home court on the 16th and 17th May. In this, the absolute best case scenario is also the least likely outcome, and that is if we win both games there, and beat them by more than a combined 36 points, we will become the tops seed and play Salvador at home on the 20th May. If we lose or win and fail to overcome the point differential, we play Costa Rica in Costa Rica on the 20th in what will be the semifinal of the COPABA tournament.
