On 23rd September 2020, Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA) South Island Basketball Team (BLIA BT), under the captaincy of Jason Liu, played in the final of Canterbury Basketball League Tournament. About 70 people were at the Christchurch Cowles Stadium to watch the game. Led by its President Bernie, more than 10 BLIA members came to cheer their team. Among the BLIA supporters were, Samantha, wife of President Bernie, BLIA South Island Vice President James and his wife, and BLIA South Island 1st subchapter President Louisa. BLIA BT entered the early qualifying rounds of the Tournament in July 2020, and won a place in the Final after several fiercely contested games.
Both teams qualified for the Final were equally strong. The opponent of BLIA BT, the Checkers White, had an inherent advantage in height with the players’ average height at 1.9 m. To compensate for their disadvantage, the shorter BLIA players had to rely on better skills in passing, dribbling, and shooting, and had to work extra hard. At the beginning of the game, BLIA BT managed to trail behind Checkers White quite closely with few points’ difference, causing BLIA supporters to follow the game intensely, cheering their team on every dribbling and shooting opportunity. In the end, the height and size of Checkers White Team proved to be a determining factor, and Checkers White finally won the game at 48 to 42, making them the champion, and BLIA BT the runner-up of the Tournament.
On behalf of BLIA South Island, President Bernie praised BLIA BT for putting up an excellent performance, earning BLIA a spot in the game of basketball. He thanked the players for their efforts and sacrifices in taking part in the games thus far. BLIA BT Captain Jason remarked that his Team treasured the opportunity to take part in this game with Checkers White for it allowed them to experience playing with a formidable team, learning from them in the process. Fo Guang Shan (FGS) South Island Minister-in-charge Venerable Jue Xi thanked the Team for taking part in the Tournament and expressed her pride for their achievements.
