UWI wins first three games in Momentum invitational U23 men’s basketball tournament
It’s Saturday, June 10, and The UWI St Augustine Academy of Sport basketball team has a big game tomorrow. They play New Chapter Academy in the final four of Momentum, The UWI Basketball League under 23 men’s invitational tournament.
“We are well prepared,” says coach Kern George.
The team, he explained, had practiced, taken an ice bath, eaten lunch together, and were “ready to work”.
So far, the St Augustine team has been doing great work indeed. They have won all three of their games in the tournament that started on May 17 and ended on June 17. It’s quite an achievement for an institution known for its success in the classroom, not the basketball court.
“They are hungry,” says Coach George, himself a national basketball coach and former captain of the Trinidad and Tobago Men’s Basketball Team.
“They are young men who were not all that serious about basketball because they were focused on their school work. I call them the second chance team. They just need a chance to show T&T that they can play basketball as well as study.”
Once upon a time, The UWI was synonymous with sport. The campuses had student clubs for everything from water polo, to table tennis, to hockey. Cricket legend Sir Frank Worrell was the Dean of Students and the university was seen as the potential breeding ground for Caribbean athletes.
“With the necessary dedication and coaching,” Sir Frank wrote in the 1966 Pelican Annual, “These young ladies and men should have their university at the top of every sports table in the country.”
Today, the drive to reestablish The UWI as a headquarters for sport has been accelerated through several initiatives, the creation of the cross-campus Faculty of Sport and its campus-based Academies of Sport is one of the most prominent. The university’s sporting agenda has already helped to develop numerous athletes that have represented their countries and the region at the highest levels.
With tournaments like Momentum, The UWI encourages youth development, both on and off the campus.
“It’s been a learning experience,” says Coach George of his squad. “We had three games prior to this tournament. We won one and lost two. We worked heavily on our fitness. That is what propelled us through the last couple games. Every game that we played, we got better.”
That growth, win or lose, is the gift of sport, fostering both personal growth and team spirit. But let’s be clear, The UWI St Augustine team, like the other remaining teams – New Chapter Academy, Matthew Pierre Basketball Academy, and Morvant Oilbirds Basketball Academy – are in it to win it. Good luck to them all.
Editor's note: The UWI Momentum Invitational concluded on Sunday, June 18, 2023. Matthew Pierre Academy took the finals over New Chapter Academy, 77 to 75, giving the teams gold and silver respectively. The UWI St Augustine team took bronze.
