Cuba began their 2014 CBC Championship participation with an 82-56 victory over Antigua.
It was a close game in the beginning with both teams exchanging baskets and Cuba ending up ahead 19-14 after ten minutes of play. Yoan Luis Haiti scored seven points in this opening quarter.
Antigua was able to hang with Cuba in the first two quarters with a balanced offensive effort, but another 7 point quarter, this time by Orestes Torres, was enough for the Cubans finish the first half with a 33-27 lead.
The third followed the trend established in the first two quarters of play, until Osmel Oliva entered the game with 4:20 in the clock to completely change the dynamics of the match in favor of Cuba. A 22-5 run from that moment on broke open the game for a Cuban team that ended the third quarter with a 59-37.
The game was history from this point forward with a Cuba team that had five players that ended up with double figures, contributing to their final 82-56 victory.
Luis Haiti had a monster game for Cuba with 20 points and 15 rebounds, while for Antigua, Earnest Scott led the game with 23 points, long with 10 boards.
Tomorrow, Cuba plays St. Vincent & the Grenadines at 2:00pm in the first game of the second day, while Antigua faces Bahamas at 6:45pm.