Both the Temple Christian Suns boys and Carlton E. Francis Rockets girls' basketball teams emerged as champions in their respective divisions at the fifth annual Temple Christian Basketball Classic, which was held at the school's gymnasium on Collins Avenue over the weekend.
The Suns defeated the Rockets boys club 31-25 in its final game, the team was led by tournament most valuable player (MVP) Cameron Toote, who finished the game with 12 points.
In girls action, the Rockets escaped with a narrow 14-12 victory over the Suns. Brinika Alesius was named MVP of the division and finished the final game with 11 points for the Rockets.
Based on the tournament, Suns Coach Nekeno Demeritte said that, although his teams made the finals, he sees a few areas that they can be improved on going forward.
"The thing I liked most about the teams was that they gave a good fight," he said. "They showed a lot of heart when they came from behind in a few games, they didn't give up, and now I know they have that fight in them. Moving forward, we just have to work on screening and other offensive plays to get the girls free to get their shots. With the boys, we just have to keep them from getting overconfident on the court. They know they're a good team, but I try my best to keep them humble."
Demeritte also noted that he has already begun to make plans for next year's event, and the first thing he is looking to change is the venue.
"We have now grown bigger than Temple Christian gymnasium," said Demeritte. "I mean that in terms of fans and teams. So now I am looking to occupy another venue. We are trying to upgrade in terms of team participation next year, we had a lot of teams show interest this year, but I guess they couldn't get things together with the short notice."
The schools that took place in this year's classic include St. Cecilia's, Freedom Academy, Queen's College, Kingsway Academy, Carlton Francis, Palmdale Primary, Mt. Carmel Primary and Temple Christian Primary.
The Suns will play in seven more tournaments this school year, the largest being the Father Marcian Peters Primary School Tournament that takes place in February at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs National Gymnasium.

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