The Guaynabo Mets are back in the BSN playoffs.
Guaynabo closed out the regular season with a 97 – 91 win over the Carolina Giants on Thursday, securing a second-place finish in the BSN’s B Division and a first-round matchup with Arecibo.
Hopes are high for a Mets team that won 20 of their last 27 games, including 4 of their last 5, to finish with 21 wins—tied for the third most in the league. They will have home court advantage against Arecibo when their series tips off on Monday, June 19th at Mario “Quijote” Morales Coliseum.
A playoff appearance felt far from certain after the Mets started the season 1 – 8. But Guaynabo turned their season around and is playing as well as any team in the league entering the postseason.
The veteran leadership of coach Omar González helped to steady the ship as the Mets found their stride and improved to 11 – 10 on the season. At the All-Star break, the Mets had won 10 of their last 12 games and sat in fourth place. Coming out of the break, Guaynabo kept up their winning ways, at one point riding a five-game win streak into second place, a position they would not relinquish despite a strong push from third-place finisher Santurce.
In their regular season finale victory, the Mets showed off the depth and resiliency that will make them a real postseason threat to the rest of the league. Playing without regulars E.J. Crawford, Mitch Creek, and DeMarcus Cousins, Guaynabo erased a 39 – 53 halftime deficit to come out on top.
Cousins is a big reason why the Mets were able to flip the script on their season. In his first ten games with the team, Guaynabo went from 8 – 9 to 15 – 12.
But the Mets received contributions from across the roster as they went from last place to second place. Offseason additions Gary Browne and Jaysean Paige finished among the league leaders in points, assists, steals, and three-pointers made, while fellow guard E.J. Crawford was a top-ten scorer from the free throw line and Cousins finished ninth in the league in blocks and tenth in three-point shooting percentage.
Cousins, who has taken the BSN by storm after joining the Mets mid-season, likely would have ranked higher in several statistical categories if he’d played a full season. Cousins said in April that he still had “a lot left in the tank,” and he’s proven it with his stellar play. He won the Hoops Agents Player of the Week award from LatinBasket.com in week 31 following a 37-point performance against Mayaquez. Cousins won the award again in week 39 with a 33-point, 17-rebound double-double versus San German.
The former first-round NBA pick and four-time NBA All-Star is still a force on the court. As he did in the NBA, Cousins has filled up the stat sheet as a member of the Mets. He finished the regular season averaging 20.4 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 43.7% from behind the three-point line.
Cousins and the Mets will look to keep rolling when their playoff journey begins on Monday at 8PM. The full first-round, best-of-seven series schedule is as follows:
- Game 1: ARE @GBO: June 19
- Game 2: GBO @ ARE: June 22
- Game 3: ARE @ GBO: June 24
- Game 4: GBO @ ARE: June 26
- Game 5: ARE @ GBO: June 28 (If necessary)
- Game 6: GBO @ ARE: June 30 (If necessary)
- Game 7: ARE @ GBO: July 2 (If necessary)
To purchase tickets, click here or call 787-200-7110. For Mets gear, visit the official online store.
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