AN increase in the number of teams is likely to boost competition at the upcoming Fiji Bitter Easter Basketball Club Championship.

Basketball Fiji development officer Laisiasa Puamau said the annual event would draw four clubs more than the previous championship. Puamau said with the organisers receiving positive response from the participating clubs, the five-day championship is expected to be a thriller.

"Last year we had 26 teams but this year we have increased by four therefore we have 30 teams playing in the Easter tournament," he said. "We expect a very tough competition especially because it runs for five days and teams will need to be fit to survive. "At the moment all teams are preparing well for the Easter tournament and they all looking forward to a very tough competition."

Puamau said the four associations under the umbrella of Basketball Fiji are finalising their top clubs for the championship. Raiwaqa, being the biggest local club, is expected to field the highest number of clubs followed by Suva, Lautoka and Nadi. "Suva will field seven men's clubs while Raiwaqa will have eight and four men's club from Lautoka and Nadi," Puamau said. "In the women's division, there will be eight women's team from Raiwaqa and two from Lautoka."

Puamau also said the national selectors would be present during the championship to gauge the performance of the national squad members taking part in the upcoming Pacific Games. "All the national reps will be participating in this tournament. Also the national coach will be looking at his players and this will be a good opportunity for him to gauge the players performance," he said. "So basically this is an opportunity for other players to showcase their skills as well at the biggest basketball event that Basketball Fiji holds every year."

Meanwhile, defending champions Saints from Suva will try to retain their title and win the $1,000 up for grabs this year. The runners-up in the men's division will walk away with $500 while the two semi-finalists will get $200 each. In the women's division the winner walks away with $800 while the runner-up gets $400.

The two losing semi-finalists get $200. There are also associated prizes for the best dressed and the best player of the tournament for the men's and women's competition.

Article: The Fiji Times Newspaper

11th April 2011