Basketball in Africa

BY CHARLES MUTEBI

MTN-FUBA Classic League
Men’s division 1
Riders v Falcons (5.30pm)
Women
Bucks v Rangers (1pm)
A1 v Cubs (4pm)

ALMOST a month since their last MTN-FUBA League game, the new-look Mountain Dew Falcons will have a second bite at the cherry, today at YMCA. This time against the Knight Riders, a club that has so far lost all three of its games this season.

The Falcons defeated men’s division one debutantes St. Michael in their only game of the season 23 days ago and will be fancied to blow past the Riders, who face another long battle against relegation this year.

Public interest then will not be about the likely result of this encounter – even though a Riders upset would be very welcome to most neutrals. What everyone will want to see is how good Falcons’ new set of foreign signings really is.

Four, including Richard Osano, Karim Mosi, Sinarizi Cedric and Beinvenu Ndandu all played against St. Michael and, with the exception of the latter, impressed. Osano, who is no stranger to local basketball after dominating last year’s zone five championship with Kenya’s Cooperative Bank, dictated the play against St. Michael.
Mosi gunned a game and currently league high 31 points, including seven three-pointers, while Sinarizi played with an impressive hassle which earned him 13 points.
It will be interesting to see how much improvement those three have made since. Plus, Mike Bazungu and Francis Gahuranyi – Falcons other two foreign acquisitions – are also expected to make their debuts and their performances will be followed with keen interest.

Nevertheless, while the Riders play with an intense determination, they are not the kind of opponent capable of giving such a skilled team like the Falcons a real test.
The Entebbe-based Riders lost key players in the off-season and their ability to upset FUBA giants like the Falcons has all but vanished considering how little it was in the first place.