SPORTS SECTION E
Tuesday, January 27, 2026
NASSAU CUP - Page E5
Cougars on a roll
HANGTIME: The Charles W Saunders Cougars senior boys’ basketball team yesterday knocked off the Queen’s College Comets 61-35 on their home court at Charles W Saunders High School in the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools action. In their bid to regain the title they last held in 2024, the Cougars have surged ahead of the standings with a perfect 11-0 win-loss record with three more games left in the regular season. Photo: Chappell Whyms Jr/Tribune Staff SEE THE FULL STORY AND MORE PHOTOS ON PAGE E3
Leiyah Bain ‘considered most complete and feared point guard in Dade County’ By BRENT STUBBS Chief Sports Editor bstubbs@tribunemedia.net TALENTED Leiyah Bain continues her impressive season under her Bahamian coach Cedricka Sweeting with the Miami Killian High Cougars women’s basketball team. Bain, considered to be the most complete and feared point guard in Dade County, is averaging an astonishing 36.5 points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists per game. The Cougars had their 10-game winning streak snapped in a 68-66 loss that saw Bain pour in a game high 42 points. “I’m just trusting the work that I put in this summer,” said Bain of her performance so far this season. “Last year, I lacked a lot of confidence, but my coach believed in me so just having her coach me, I just know that she trusts me so I
am just putting my best foot forward and trying to win.” The former HO Nash Lions’ player under the tutelage of coach Patricia ‘Pattie’ Johnson said the competition has been intense, but she’s been holding her own on the court. “It’s good competition, to be honest. It’s great competition. I just have a lot of confidence in me and my team,” Bain pointed out. “When we step on the floor, it doesn’t matter who we are playing. “I don’t see who is in front of me. I just step out there to play and to win.” If she can maintain the level of performance she’s enjoying now, Bain said she would like to complete it by winning the State championship title. “That’s my main goal for this year, to lead my team to the state championship,” said Bain, who is currently in the 11th grade. “I’ve had a lot of college scouts coming to watch me
LEIYAH Bain (shooting) works out with coach Cedricka Sweeting. perform, so I have a lot to look forward to.” Bain said the league has been a very competitive one, but she put in a lot of work with coach Sweeting, who has encouraged her not to use the words “I can’t.”
“She pushes me to my limit every day. “To have someone from the same place like The Bahamas is very encouraging. She knows how badly I want it and how much she wants it for me. “We are both hungry for it and
she wants the best for the team.” Sweeting, a former outstanding basketball player herself, said Bain, an 18-year-old daughter of Akoya Pennerman and Leon Bain, has become a complete player. “She has
been outstanding, playing at a high level,” Sweeting said. “Every opponent she’s faced, she does what she has to do. She plays aggressively on the floor, getting to the basket and putting the team on her back.” Sweeting said Bain has been able to showcase her talent, even when her opponents double and triple team her. “She can still break them down and get to the basket,” Sweeting said. “She hasn’t even scratched the surface on what she can do yet. She’s just getting started.” Bain, who had a career high 47 points in November, will be back in action on Wednesday in the last of the Cougars’ three games left in the regular season before they prepare for the start of the playoffs on February 2. Last year, the Cougars made it to the regionals, making their exit in the second round of the playoffs.