Coming into the penultimate weekend of the BPBL regular season, the San Pedro Tiger Sharks were 10–0, with only two games left. The last was against the 7th-ranked team, making this trip to the Russel Chiste Garcia Auditorium in Dangriga the final real obstacle on their road to perfection. The EZ Investments Dangriga Dream Ballers had been locked in at number two for almost the entire second half of the season, and both squads were on a collision course for the Toucan Cup Championship—if Griga could get past PG. Their last home clash with the Sharks ended in a gut-wrenching overtime loss before a capacity crowd. That heartbreak set the stage for this marquee showdown at the Russell Chiste Garcia Stadium, with the BPBL’s two top predators circling.
How it unfolded
Q1 – Feeling-out firefight (DB 22–20): The Sharks landed first: at 9:06, Keon Rowland slipped behind the line for a 0–2 layup off Francis Arana, and at 8:45 Tyrell Griffith canned a transition three for 0–5. Griga steadied when Daniel Conorque knifed in at 6:45 (now 4–7) and Kevon Laurie stuffed a Griffith three at 6:37 before Edgar Mitchell finished a slashing layup at 6:24. In between, Kirk “Shabba” Smith Jr. drew two whistles—going 4-for-4 at the stripe at 6:18 and 6:02—to pull within 6–7.
San Pedro tried to press the size advantage: Keith Pollard floated one in at 5:04 (7–10), then Malik Hunt barreled to the rim for a and-1 at 4:41 (7–13). But Griga’s spacing answered—Conorque drilled a 3 at 3:43 (13–15)—and their pressure flipped the quarter when Laurie picked a pass at 3:21 and Mitchell turned it into a 2+1 at 3:15 (16–15) after a full timeout.
Arana’s floater restored a slim Sharks edge at 1:03 (20–20), but on the final meaningful touch Laurie carved through traffic for the go-ahead layup at :33.9. Griga closed the first with a 22–20 lead and, more importantly, the pace where they wanted it.
Q2 – The avalanche (DB 25–9; halftime DB 47–29): The fuse lit quickly. Deshawn Brackett got on the board at 9:43, Quinton Bowen muscled a putback at 9:38 (24–20), and then Brackett detonated: a triple at 9:15 (28–20) and another at 8:51 (31–20), both off secondary action. The Sharks burned a timeout at 8:29, but Griga kept coming—Brackett at the line 7:19 (34–20), then a knifing layup at 7:00 (36–20). Antonio Flowers capped the run with a sprint-out finish at 6:08 (38–20).
The defense did the rest. Griga forced a string of miscues—Arana turnovers at 7:05 and 6:47—and turned them into paint points. Euan Wade and Gabriel Taylor tag-teamed a mini-surge: Taylor fed Brackett, then later hit from mid-range at 3:35 (42–26) and slipped in a layup at 3:19 (44–26), both courtesy of Wade. Wade kept crashing, finishing at 2:01 (46–26).
After a technical free throw by Conorque at :39.8 (47–29) and one last Sharks bucket, the horn sounded on a 47–29 halftime—25–9 in the quarter—built on live-ball takeaways and relentless rim pressure.
Q3 – Sharks bite back (SP 26–19; DB 66–55): Out of the break, Brackett scored at 9:59 (49–29), and Smith Jr. splashed a three at 9:27 to steady the lead. But San Pedro found traction: Rowland cashed at 8:55 (49–33) and Hunt powered a finish at 8:07 (53–35). Griga countered with Brackett’s drive at 8:31 (53–33) before the Sharks’ athleticism punched back.
The tide briefly turned on highlight plays—Rowland’s dunk at 6:24 (54–41)—but Brackett’s turnaround at 5:19 (58–41) answered. San Pedro kept the squeeze on the glass: Rowland tip-in at 5:04 and FT at 5:02 (58–45), followed by Griffith’s pair at 4:37 (58–46). Griga regrouped with Laurie’s cut at 3:46 (60–46) and Brackett’s layup at 3:13 (62–48).
The Sharks still carved into it late: Griffith knifed through at 2:21 (62–52), Smith Jr. hammered a two-hand dunk at 1:27 (66–52) to jolt the crowd, and Arana buried a deep three at 1:07 (66–55). Griga held through the final sequence to reach the fourth up 66–55.
Q4 – The scare and the seal (SP 17–12; final DB 78–72): San Pedro made its last charge. Rowland opened with a 3 at 9:54 (66–58) and an alley‑oop at 9:25 (66–60) from Arana. Mitchell steadied Griga at the stripe 9:09 (67–60) and with a layup at 8:47 (69–60), but Arana kept coming downhill at 8:11 (69–62).
Griga rebuilt the cushion with Bowen at 7:53 (71–62) and Smith Jr.’s calm free throws at 6:33 (73–62), yet the Sharks wouldn’t fold: Hunt split at 6:16 (73–63), Griffith stuck a putback at 5:07 (73–65) and then a dunk at 4:16 (73–67). When Arana drilled a pull‑up three at 3:11 (73–70), the gym hit full boil.
Composure won it. Mitchell floated one home at 2:34, and after a couple of scrappy exchanges, Brackett rose for a cold-blooded step‑back three at 1:29 (76–72), then broke pressure with a driving layup at 1:08 (78–72). From there, Griga’s defense forced a steal‑and‑giveback sequence and bled the clock for the signature win that snapped San Pedro’s perfect season.
Player spotlights
Wrap-up
This was more than just a regular-season clash — it was a potential preview of the Toucan Cup Final on August 5th, 2025. It also marked the first time San Pedro had faced the Dream Ballers with Belizean-American import Kirk “Shabba” Smith Jr., whose presence clearly made a difference in Griga’s approach and execution. The Sharks, however, were without two cornerstones: Minister of Buckets, Devin Daly, and their anchor and team leader Jihad Wright. If these squads meet again, the Dream Ballers will be staring at a very different Shark in those deep playoff waters. The only question is whether the Sharks will lure Griga into a bloody battle beneath the waves — or if the Dream Ballers will serve San Pedro up as Hudut on a platter in front of a roaring home crowd in Dangriga.
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