Barrolle and the Commissioners Showcase their Dominance at the 2024 National Basketball Awards.

Monrovia, Liberia: On Saturday, February 8, 2025, basketball enthusiasts witnessed impressive displays of talent from Mighty Barrolle and Commissioners Basketball teams at the 2024 Liberia Basketball Association (LBA) Awards.

Both teams secured top honors in individual categories, including Most Valuable Player (MVP), Highest Assists, and Top Scorer, among others, in the Men’s First Division and Women’s Division Championships.

Mighty Barrolle’s stars, Omar Samba, and Joel Martor, earned the title of League MVP and Player MVP in the Men’s First Division for the 2024 season, reflecting their exceptional performances that helped the team clinch the championship title last season.

Rose Emmanuel, a key player for the Commissioners, won the Most Valuable Player and Top Scorer awards in the Women’s Division. Additionally, young talent Korpo Sumo was recognized with the Playoff MVP and Highest Assists awards while playing for the Commissioners.

The outstanding achievements of players from both Mighty Barrolle and Commissioners at the 2024 LBA Awards can be attributed to their significant contributions that led their teams to win both the Men’s First Division and Women’s Division Championships last season.

Mighty Barrolle, affectionately known as the Rollers, triumphed over Cestos Mongars in a best-of-five finals series to win the Men’s First Division last season. Omar Samba and Joel Martor, who were named Player and League MVPs, played pivotal roles in their team’s championship success.

The Commissioners secured the Women’s Division championship by defeating the Invincible Eleven Women Basketball Team, which also facilitated their players’ recognition with various awards, including MVPs, Best Defender, Top Scorer, and Highest Assists at the recently held National Basketball Awards.

While receiving the Player MVP Award, Joel Martor expressed his gratitude, stating, “I want to take this opportunity to thank my Barrolle family, especially my coach, who allowed me to play basketball. I feel proud to win this award.”

Mighty Barrolle's head coach, Assad Fadel, shared his excitement over his players' achievements, attributing their dominance in individual awards to their passion and determination.

He emphasized their consistent effort to win in every game and their adherence to tactical coaching saying, “It is about hard work, perseverance, and strong leadership that made this possible. These players listen to us and strive to win.”

During the event, the President of the Liberia Basketball Association, Abraham Samukai, commended the individual players and clubs for their successes across various categories.

Samukai encouraged the top-performing clubs and players to maintain their impressive form and strive for further achievements.

He also highlighted the progress made under his leadership, noting the lifting of the suspension by FIBA-Africa and the participation of under-18 male and female teams in international competitions for the first time since 2007 as key accomplishments for basketball in Liberia.

Samukai said: “Basketball has truly won; our purpose in coming to this gym every evening is to support our respective clubs toward victory. Seeing others crowned as champions is very encouraging. If you don’t win today, you can win tomorrow”.

“We faced a suspension from international play, which was a relief after our election, but now we are back on the international stage,” the LBA President asserted.

The 2024 LBA Awards, held at the SKD Basketball Gymnasium in Paynesville City, outside Monrovia, brought together key personalities, including Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Andy Quamie, a representative from the Liberia National Olympics Committee, athletes, and stakeholders in the sport.

Edited; E. Geedahgar Garsuah, Sr.