20 November 2013
UGANDA : Crucial series lead at stake
Warriors star man Henry Malinga (L) flies to lay up over Falcons Phillip Amenyi (R) and Steven Mwesigye in Game Two at Lugogo on Sunday. Photo by Ismail Kezaala. Today at YMCA
Men
Warriors vs. Falcons (8.30pm)
(Series tied at 1-all)
Men
Warriors vs. Falcons (8.30pm)
(Series tied at 1-all)
Women
Stormers vs. KCCA (6.30pm)
(KCCA lead series 2-0)
Stormers vs. KCCA (6.30pm)
(KCCA lead series 2-0)
A combined five points have decided the first two games of the Castle Lite playoff semifinal series between Warriors and Falcons.
Warriors took Game One 76-75 on the back of Henry Malinga’s foul basket with eight seconds to play which needed the umpires to consult before giving it.Sunday’s Game Two was won by a bigger margin but with the same thriller.
Stephen Omony’s lay-up with 20 seconds on the clock gave Falcons a 79-96 lead and eventually an 80-76 victory.
It’s tied at 1-1 with the series moving to YMCA court today for Game Three.
This is probably the most significant contest of this five-game series as the winner will be one win away from the final
“Of course the game or series will always come down to small things. One who controls the ball better or rebounds will win. It’s about going the extra mile,” said Falcon coach Gad EteuOmony, 40 points in the series so far, a tally only bettered by Malinga’s 42, concurred. “We have to do the small things right as a team,” Omony said.
Since the start of the post-season, Falcons have shipped in at least 76 points if you factor in the quarterfinals series against UCU Canons which they won 2-1. The record champions, whose last title came six years ago, won that series 88-77 (OT), 63-83 and 82-76 probably under the theme – we can outscore any team.
However, they haven’t been tough enough on defence. “That’s one area we need to work on going forward,” Eteu admitted.
You feel there is a lot more to come from coach Ronnie Owino’s team.
In Game Two, Ronnie Kasewu showed glimpses of what he can do on offense with a team-high 17 points, going 4 for 7 from beyond the arc, though such games have been few and far between.
The two-time MVP can win games in so many ways other than scoring but he could relieve Malinga, Sam Gombya and Ivan Enabu some of the burden much to the benefit of Warriors.In the end, however, it could again turn out to be another Malinga-Omony show and the game will be better for it.
Elsewhere, KCCA Leopards, with a 2-0 series lead, will seal their place in the women’s finals with victory over Stormers in the night’s opening game.
# posted by afrbk : 15:54
