In a game of similar collective statistics and even many in favor of its rivals, Cuba achieved an important victory, at home, against Bahamas, in the first match of the second qualifying window for the FIBA AmeriCup in Managua-2025.
Cuba had the offensive contribution of different figures; Four players surpassed ten points, and two others finished the contest with eight and nine cards. For the Bahamas, each of their nine players registered for the match scored, but only two accounted for 34 of their 62 total points, according to the official statistics of the match.
This result places Cuba with two victories and one defeat and is second in the Group D table, although with the same record as the United States (2-1). Both teams divided honors in the matches against each other during Window 1, and were well positioned in the objective of achieving a place in Managua.
Today the Cubans will face Puerto Rico, in which the ticket to the event that Nicaragua will host, from August 22 to 31 of next year, could be resolved; However, you will always have to wait for the third window to certify the objective.
Regarding today’s game, it will be more difficult than this Friday’s, according to various criteria from analysts and the specialized press. The coach of the Cuban national team, Onel Planas, was optimistic in the press conference after the match against the Bahamians.
«We will go out to do our job, to resolve with our best weapons. We know the difficulty that each game entails and we will always look for defensive solidity, and with a lot of confidence in the players we have, although we know the quality of the rival we will face,” said Planas.
In the first game of this second window, Puerto Rico lost comfortably against the United States, 108 cards to 66. In this challenge, the Puerto Ricans had no arguments on the court to stop the push of the Americans. Getting a good result against the Cubans would take them out of the cold basement in Group C.
Individually, in the first games of this second window, the Brazilian who plays for Hapoel Tel Aviv in Israel, Bruno Caboclo, was the player with the highest rating (29), scoring 21 points, with 11 rebounds and four blocks, in the Brazil’s victory over Uruguay, 71-65, in Group B.
Michaell Wright also had a day to remember in Colombia’s very important victory, as a visitor, over Chile (80-74), in Group a. The forward was the spark plug for his team with 25 points and five rebounds.
Mexican Gael Bonilla stepped up in the absence of Gabriel Girón, and commanded Mexico’s success (86-77) at Nicaragua’s home, in Group c. The 21-year-old had an efficiency of 27, thanks to 20 points, five boards, six assists and three blocks.
Finally, Panama’s point guards, Iverson Molinar and Trevor Gaskins, were also among the best performing men. Both demolished Paraguay’s defense in the 116-79 away victory in Group B.
