KINGSTON College (KC) and Hydel will look to cement their advantages this afternoon when they play game two of their KFC/ISSA South Conference schools basketball best-of-three semi-finals at the National Stadium Courts at 4:00 pm. Both KC and Hydel hold 1-0 series lead over their opponents.

KC blew away St Catherine, 58-35, while champions Hydel were 66-44 winners over Ardenne.

In the first senior semi-final, Clifton Jean led the scoring for the famed ‘Purples’ with a game-high 25 points and 13 rebounds. He was supported by John-Audley Jackson with 12 points and seven rebounds, and Kadeem O’sullivan with 11 points and eight rebounds.

Ackeem Tomlinson and Alwayne Pinnock were the St Catherine chief scorers with 10 points each. Pinnock also pulled nine rebounds.

KC dominated the game from the start, racing to a 10-point lead (14-4) after the first quarter. The one-sided contest continued through the second period, which KC won 19-10 to lead 33-14 at half-time.

After the half-time interval, the Dennis Thompson-coached KC maintained their superiority as they again outscored their opponents, 17-9, to go into the final stanza leading 50-23.

Although St Catherine produced their best quarter of the game, they ended this period tied 8-8, and still finished 23 points behind the winners.

In the late game, Tevin Campbell led Hydel with 16 points, and he received good support from Deano Hibbert and Bryan Richards with 13 points each.

Javon Bailey was Ardenne’s topscorer with 21 points and 12 rebounds, with support from Sheldon Sutherland with 17 rebounds and nine blocks.

In game one of the junior semi-finals, Ardenne and KC drew first blood after victories against St Jago and St George’s College, respectively. Defending champions Ardenne turned back St Jago, 52-29, while KC defeated North Street rivals St George’s College, 55-32.

Ardenne, who are seeking back-to-back titles, got their victory courtesy of Malik McCarthy, who had 25 points. Matthew Lee supported with nine points, 13 rebounds and five steals points, while Stephen James got 11 points and six steals.

KC also made light work of St George’s with a 23-point win. Jamie Hugh-Brown led KC with 22 points and 13 rebounds, and he was followed by Malik Pusey with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Dimitri Brown with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Chevaughn Nelson was St George’s topscorer with nine points.

Game two of the series takes place at the same venue this afternoon, starting at 2:00.