Defending champions Flyers Basketball took a 1-0 series lead in their best of five Division 1 Playoff Final against rivals Northside Stingerz when they claimed game one of the Antigua and Barbuda Basketball Association (ABBA) competition by just three points on Thursday at the JSC basketball complex.

Flyers dominated the opening quarter, outscoring Stingerz 28-18. The championship hopefuls however rebounded to win the second and third quarters 15-9 and 19-12. However, Flyers claimed the final quarter 29-23 to win the pivotal opening game 78-75.

Xavier Meade led the scoring for Flyers with 19 points while also grabbing five rebounds. He was assisted by David Hernandez with 14 points off the bench while Selassie Brathwaite contributed with 11 points and six rebounds.

Joshua Minner led the way for Stingerz with a game high of 22 points and five rebounds with Kareem Edwards adding 17 points and six rebounds. Keroi Lee chipped in with 17 points and six rebounds.

Game two of the playoff final is slated for Sunday starting at 8:30 pm.

Meanwhile, Ottos Clippers rallied to a 78-76 win over Court Martials when they met in Division 2 in Thursday night’s opener.

The lead switched hands on several occasions with Ottos Clippers outscoring their opponents 23-12 in the first quarter before Court Martials rebounded to take the second, third and fourth quarters 22-19, 18-14 and 24-22.

Amare Browne top-scored for Clippers with 29 points, while Jules Frederick chipped in with 16 points off the bench. Antoine Browne picked up 13 points and seven rebounds in the winning cause. De-Lornge Jules was the top performer for Court Martials with 29 points and eight rebounds while Baldwin Anthony Jr chipped in with 17 points and 21 rebounds.