MANCHESTER — Rayon Brown had a team-high 19 points to go with 11 rebounds and Myerscough topped East London 71-57 to win the Division 3 Playoff Championship on Saturday at the National Basketball Performance Centre.
Mate Okros scored 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists and David Walsh had 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, for Myerscough, which added to its haul of regular season and National Shield titles this season.
Myerscough weathered a 14-0 run from East London before using a 7-0 burst to overturn its lone deficit of the game — a single point — to take a 30-24 lead.
The Division 3 North regular season champions then broke open a nine-point halftime lead, as Okros sparked a 13-2 run with a 3-point play. Myerscough would go on to hold East London to just nine points in the third quarter and build a 56-37 advantage.
East London never got closer than 16 and back-t0-back 3-point plays from Landry Mayinga and Brown, who was named Finals MVP, pushed the game out of reach.
Myerscough shot 40 percent from the floor in a rematch of the National Shield semifinals whilst East London was held to just 28 percent shooting.
Arif Sempala finished with a game-high 21 points and 10 rebounds for East London. Seun Bashua-Olaofe added a double-doube (10 points & 11 rebounds) in the loss.
NOTES: Myerscough coach Neal Hopkins was named Division 3 North Coach of the Year … East London coach Joshua Tackie was named Division 3 South Coach of the Year … Myerscough outscored East London 32-30 on points in the paint … Myerscougb bench outscored East London 23-18.