Day Two in Morovis

Diana Orozco

GROUP A

EL SALVADOR - PUERTO RICO 29-83
Puerto Rico jumped to 2-0 in Group A of the 2012 Centrobasket Championship in Morovis. The host of this event destroyed El Salvador 29-83 and already booked a ticket for the Semifinals. Today, the defending champion will meet Mexico. The winner of that game will take the first place in Group A. At the other side, El Salvador will play against Jamaica and will try to avoid the last place in this pool. Both teams are winless at this moment. Jazmine Sepulveda (186-G-85, agency: Merit Sports, college: S.Florida) top-scored in victory again with 17 points. Pamela Rosado (166-PG-86) had 12 points and Deanna Ortiz (177-G) added 11. Each of Puerto Rico players managed to score at least 3 points in this game. In El Salvador, Veronica Sosa (173-SG-90) was way better than the others with 19 points and 6 rebounds. Their second scorer was Mirna Simon (168-SF-82) with only 4 points! Quarters: 11-20, 7-35, 6-15, 5-13. Today is the last day of the Preliminary Round in Morovis.

El Salvador: Veronica Sosa 19+6 boards, Mirna Simon 4
Puerto Rico: Jazmine Sepulveda 17, Pamela Rosado 12, Deanna Ortiz 11


JAMAICA - MEXICO 44-65
Mexico registered second straight win at the 2012 Centrobasket in Morovis. After victory against El Salvador in Day One, Mexico outplayed Jamaica 44-65 for 2-0 record in Group A. It means that Mexico already booked a spot for the Semifinals. They will meet Puerto Rico today in the battle for the first place in this pool. Maria Orozco (176-PF) shined for the winners with 22 points. Rocio Medrano (178-G) had 10 points and Abril Garcia (188-F/C-80, college: ORU) added 9 pts, plus 9 boards. In defeat, Tarita Gordon (165-G-89) responded with 18 points. Their second scorer was Shenneika Smith (185-G) with 13 points (7 rebs). Quarters: 8-17, 11-12, 12-19, 13-17. Jamaica will play against El Salvador today. The winner will avoid the last place in Group A.

Jamaica: Tarita Gordon 18, Shenneika Smith 13+7
Mexico: Maria Orozco 22, Rocio Medrano 10, Abril Garcia 9+9 boards


GROUP B

CUBA - DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 101-67
Cuba was too strong for Dominican Republic yesterday celebrating huge 101-67 win. It means that Cuba jumped to 2-0 record in Group A of the 2012 Centrobasket in Morovis. At the same time, Dominican Republic faced with the first loss and they have 1-1 score now. Both teams have a nice chance to reach the Semifinals, but everything will be known later today. Cuba will meet US Virgin Islands, while Dominican Republic will play against Trinidad and Tobago. Leidys Oquendo (180-F-82) top-scored for the winners with 22 points. Yamara Amargo (180-F-85) had 16, while Taimy Fernandez (183-F-82) (10 rebs) and Suchitel Avila (183-F-82) netted 10 points each. In the loosing squad, Lily Abreu (172-G-90) scored 13 points. Carmen Guzman (172-SG-85, agency: Merit Sports, college: UAB) (5 rebs) and Charlenny Frias (170-G-84) followed her with 12 pts apiece. Quarters: 30-7, 20-19, 27-24, 24-17.

Cuba: Leidys Oquendo 22, Yamara Amargo 16, Taimy Fernandez 10+10 boards, Suchitel Avila 10
Dominican Republic: Lily Abreu 13, Carmen Guzman 12+5 boards, Charlenny Frias 12


U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS - TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 58-49
Both teams failed in Day One of the 2012 Centrobasket in Morovis. Yesterday, the US Virgin Islands outplayed Trinidad and Tobago 58-49 for 1-1 record in Preliminary Group A. Thanks to this victory USVI still has a chance to reach the Semifinals, but they will have to beat Cuba today. Natalie Day (182-G/F-90) was a key player for the winners with 21 points and 9 rebounds. She was the MVP of this game with valuation 23. Akkema Richards (172-SG) had 14 points and 6 rebs, and Brittney Matthew (170-G) helped USVI with 9 points. In T&T, Shakira Clarke (182-C) collected 11 points and 5 rebs. Adanna David (177-F) and Rhea Codio (165-G-88) stopped to 9 points apiece. Quarters: 9-9, 21-19, 9-9, 19-12. Today is the last day of the Preliminary Round in Morovis. T&T (0-2) will play against Dominican Republic.

USVI: Natalie Day 21+9 boards, Akkema Richards 14+6 boards, Brittney Matthew 9
T&T: Shakira Clarke 11+5 boards, Adanna David 9, Rhea Codio 9