Olympic Basketball Qualifying Tournament

The Bahamians jumped out to a 31-16 lead at the end of the first quarter before a tight second quarter meant the Caribbean nation enjoyed a 50-36 lead at halftime.

Lebanon had a much better defensive showing in the third quarter, holding the Bahamas to only 13 points while scoring 18 of their own to cut the deficit to 63-54 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Bahamas were back to their dominating best in the final stanza, however, winning 26-18 for a final score of 89-72.

Ayton, in his 32 minutes of action, went 11-15 from the field on his way to a top score of 24 points to go along with 15 rebounds.

Warriors guard Buddy Hield contributed 19 points while VJ Edgecombe and Eric Gordon had 13 points, each.

Sergio El Darwich had 22 points, five rebounds and three assists for Lebanon.

Their opponent in Sunday’s final will be the winner of the semi-final between Spain and Finland.

At the time of publishing, Spain were ahead 38-30 at halftime.

The other semi-final will see hosts Spain taking on Finland, who the Bahamians defeated in the group stage.

The winner of the tournament will advance to the Paris Olympics.

The Bahamians booked their spot in the final four with a 90-81 win over Poland on Wednesday.

18-year-old Valdez “VJ” Edgecombe Jr, a projected top-5 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft who has committed to Baylor University, led the way with an efficient 21 points on 13 shot attempts. He also pulled in six rebounds and had one steal and one block.

Portland Trailblazers center Deandre Ayton was also solid with 18 points and nine rebounds while Eric Gordon missed just one of his six shot attempts on his way to 12 points.

San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan had 16 points and 10 rebounds for Poland.

Lebanon booked their spot in the semis with a 74-70 win over Angola, also on Wednesday.

Former Villanova and Golden State Warriors big man Omari Spellman dominated with 22 points and 13 rebounds for Lebanon and will need to be given extra attention by the Bahamians on Saturday.