Robert Bailey, Freelance Writer

EVEN before tip-off, Waul-grovian Bullets' coach Marland Nattie was certain his team could not lose the final.

So for him, there was no surprise when the defending champions comfortably completed their mission with a 57-43 finals win on Saturday night against the Jamaica Basketball Association (JBA) Development Team of Under 18 players.

"I am very happy because there was no doubt in my mind that we were going to lose this championship," said Nattie after the Bullets retained their title in the 2006-07 Modern Rubber Stamp/JBA) female league.

Playing in-front of a fair-sized crowned and led by a game-high 23 points and 19 rebounds from utility player and captain, Oberon Pitterson, the Bullets came out firing on all cylinders in the first quarter and quickly took an 11-point lead to end the first quarter leading 19-8, with Pitterson scoring 10 points.

Support from Bidwell

With Pitterson receiving solid support from Latoya Bidwell, who scored 19 points and grabbed six steals, the Bullets increased their dominance in the second quarter as they went on a scoring spree and opened up a 20-point gap to end the period 33-13.

However, after the half-time interval, the Development Team came out and dominated the third stanza by cutting the Bullets lead to 11 points with Vanessa Walker scoring seven of her team's 13 points in the quarter. This number represented their highest quota for any of the quarters and they narrowed the lead to nine points at 41-30.

The fourth quarter was exciting with both teams trading basket for basket, as Walker and her teammates, mainly Simone Hamilton (10 points, 10 rebounds) and Sasha Dixon (10 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists), stepped up their play.

However, the more experienced Bullets held their nerves down the stretch as Bidwell scored two answered three-pointers with less than a minute remaining to ensure the defending champions kept their crown.

Nattie said experience and team work paid dividends.

"We have some very senior players on our team in Pitterson, who is the senior semi-professional player and MVP for the senior championship last year, Bidwell, Colleen Nattie and Natalie Tucker. All these guys have been together for over six years, but it was a team game overall and I must congratulate the Development Team because I think they played well," he said.

Coach of the Development Team, Rohan Robinson, said: " We had a very good core of girls, but what they were lacking in was the experience, because no one could tell that they would get this far."