Basketball in Africa

by Pius Ayinor
Lagos

First Bank and Delta Force teams will take the first jump ball as the First Deepwater Discovery basketball tournament starts today in Lagos. The competition tagged the First Deepwater Discovery Battle for Supremacy will also offer three other matches on Day-one at the University of Lagos Sports Centre, Akoka. The match is billed to be played at 10.00am.
The opening game promises to be keenly contested as it appears a carry-over of the national league with the Elephant Girls clearly the favourite having dominated the local scene in the last one decade. An upset is, however, not impossible.
The Adewumi Aderemi coached team will play without him as he travelled out to Cotonou yesterday with the national U16 girls' team. In his place will be his assistant Shola Ogunade - a former national guard.
The second match of the day will be between 2005 Vmobile Challenge contest winner, Union Bank against Savannah Conference top rated side, Kano Pillars in a game that promises to be a thriller.
"We are set for this competition and nothing except Union Bank can stop us from winning," said the Bankers point guard, Sola Alayande.
Zenith Bank Women League runners-up Dolphins will engage Sunshine Angels of Akure in a very balanced set with dunk off time set at 1pm.
The Akure-based Angels coached by Nigeria U18 Women head coach Andrew Isokpehi is set to confirm her rating as the better side with a 2-1 record this season over Wale Aboredin's Dolphins.
The last match of the day will be between two of the country's best male club-sides, Ebun Comets of Lagos and Niger Potters of Minna.
This is one match that fans cannot afford to miss going by the pedigree of both sides, while Potters can boast of experienced players on their roster, Comets are blessed with youthful players backed with a rich bench.