Western Bureau:

Cornwall College could seal both the senior and junior titles in the 2008 KFC Western Schoolboy Basketball League this afternoon at the Montego Bay Cricket Club Courts when they engage Mannings High and Spot Valley in Game Two in the best-of-three finals of both competitions.

The Cornwall College boys put themselves on course for the enviable double on Thursday afternoon, also at the Montego Bay Cricket Club Courts when they won Game One in both competitions, beating Mannings 77-70 in the senior game and outshining Spot Valley 54-38 in the final among the juniors

Two matchups

Prior to this afternoon's Game Two matchups, slated for 3 p.m. and 5 p.m starts, respectively, there will be two third-place play-off games between the beaten semi-finals in both the junior and senior sections. The winners will qualify for the all-island play-offs alongside the finalists.

In the senior teams' Game One, Cornwall College won the first and fourth quarters 27-4 and 19-13, respectively, while Mannings romped the second and third quarters 23-20 and 29-10.

Cornwall College's win was spearheaded by gritty performances from Gavin Brown, who had 21 points, 11 rebounds, 10 steals and 10 assists; John Bryan, who had 11 points and 23 rebounds; and Peter Reid, who had 10 points and 19 rebounds.

Ricardo Chambers and Troy Reid were outstanding for Mannings with 37 points, and 17 rebounds and 10 points, respectively.

Major scare

In the junior showdown, the Cornwall College team was given a major scare by Spot Valley, which won the second and third quarters 10-9 and 15-9. However, their first quarter 9-5 margin and their final quarter 22-13 score was enough to give them victory.

In what was a hard-fought contest, Cornwall College snatched victory through Christopher Smith, who had a game-high 31 points and Obrian Chambers, who supported well with 12 pints. Shavane Stephenson and Nicholas Smith did well for Spot Valley getting 14 and 10 points, respectively.

Should Cornwall College falter in any of today's game, the series will extend to a Game Three on Thursday. Based on the way both Mannings and Spot Valley played on Thursday, it would appear that they both have a fighting chance of getting back into the series.