NIGERIA : Mark, Ugboaja Call for Inclusion of Home-Based Players in D'Tigers
A Board Member of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Igoche Mark, Monday called for the inclusion of home-based players in the national male basketball team, D' Tigers.
Mark, the founder and organiser of the yearly "Mark D Ball" Tournament in Otukpo, told NAN that the board was determined to secure wild card for D'Tigers to the FIBA 2014 World Championship.
According to him, efforts have been committed to actualising the wild card project.
Mark noted that the country has talented home-based players going by the number of discoveries at the ongoing championship, which included the "Face of Idoma" Sports Beauty Pageant.
The board member advised that home-based players should be given the opportunity to develop the Nigeria basketball league.
"Judging from what is going on right now in this tournament, I can say that more talents have been discovered for the country's basketball team.
"We have confronted the coach on this issue and we were made to understand that there was an open camp where all the players will fight for shirts," Mark said.
Also speaking, a national team player and an ex-Olympian, Ejike Ugboaja, urged national basketball coach, Ayo Bakare, to desist from relying much on foreign-based players.
Ugboaja, who recently moved to Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Basketball Club in Turkey, equally called on Bakare to give the home-based players an opportunity to be part of the senior national basketball team.
KENYA : What a Great Season 2013 Has Been for Basketball Action
Three league categories feature 36 teams and Zuku start a universities competition
The 2013 basketball season will go down in history as a year where there was a great deal of action on the court and too much talk to go with it.
Thirty six teams battled in the league in three categories- men and women's premier leagues as well as Division One.
The Zuku basketball league for universities was also born.
The East and Central Africa Inter Cities championships were held in Kampala, Uganda where Sylvia Njeri guided Nairobi to their eleventh trophy in 15 years. Mombasa won the men's title.
But questions continued to be asked as to why the national champions Co-operative Bank of Kenya missed out, for the second time, on the Zone Five club championships held in Burundi.
Eagle Wings and the United States International University (USIU) teams made the journey to Bujumbura and the students met their compatriots and defending champions Wings who beat them to claim another regional title. The USIU Tigers failed to reach the semi finals.
Then it was time for the two teams to travel to Meknes, Morocco for the 19th Africa club championships for women. For the second time in a year, Wings met USIU in an all Kenyan quarter finals and prevailed 83-77.
The self supporting Wings then went on to meet Nigerian side First Deepwater whom they stunned 67-64 in a hard fought tie to bag the nation's only bronze medal in an African championship.
On the local front, USIU locked league champions Wings out of this year's play offs played in the best of five format. They booked a date with Kenya Ports Authority who had derailed Sprite Storms 3-0.
Zuku pumped in Sh50,000 to sponsor the university and colleges basketball league. The girl's category was won by USIU "Flames" while University of Nairobi "Terrorists" claimed the boy's division.
In the men's category, Co-op beat USIU 3-1 while KPA shut out Lions 3-0 to set a date in the finals where the bankers went into over drive ripping the porters apart with a 3-0 cushion to win their third successive national title.KPA women staged a gritty rally to snatch the national title from the favoured USIU with a 3-2 come from behind win in a tough series finals. It was the ports women's 14th title and an eighth one for long serving coach Anthony Ojukwu..
Four teams were relegated from the top tier with Mennonites and Nakuru Club being pushed down in the men's. NYTA Shimba Hills and Mennonites followed them down in the women's category.
In the Division One championship, Equity Bank beat Strathmore University 3-2 and both teams gained promotion to the Premier League.
In the Nairobi Basketball Association Danking Academy beat Jomo Kenyatta University (JKUAT) 3-0 to win the title while Ulinzi Blades returned to the Premier League with a 3-0 sweep of Footprints.
Malindi Nets and Barclays Bank of Kenya "Eagles" battled in the provincial play off finals and after it all ended, the two teams were confirmed as ticket holders to the lower division.
University of Nairobi "Terrorists" bagged the Zuku varsity top honour as did USIU "Flames" during a well attended finals played at the multi million shilling Safaricom Kasarani gymnasium.
At the school's level, it was a great year for Upper Hill School, who won the Nairobi title. They went to the nationals and bagged the big one before crowning it all with a regional title in Uganda.
This huge feat even earned them a Soya award. Shimba Hills also bagged the girls national and regional title.
KENYA : KPA Coach Ojukwu Credits His Veteran Players for 14th League
KENYA Ports Authority coach Anthony Ojukwu hailed his veteran players as the key to capturing their 14th women's premier league title.
The tactician, who has been at the helm at the ports for years, gave credit to his girls who failed to win their opening two games but recovered with impressive performance to stun favoured United States International University (USIU) 3-2 in a pulsating five game series to claim the 2013 crown.
He said losing one of their opening two games series at the Makande Welfare hall in Mombasa, he was caught between a rock and a hard place considering how well the "Flames" had performed beyond expectation in all their Nairobi matches.
The key to the win, explained Ojukwu, was Irene Murambi who returned to action after long lay off to put the brakes on USIU playmaker Cynthia Irankunda batting her toe to toe. Point guard Brenda Angechi was superb all through and was declared the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the finals.The long serving coach also gave mention to Yvonne Akinyi, Hellen Oketch, Millicent Anyango and Joyce Makungu as players who refused to be cowed and showed no glimpse of old age. He described their performances as brilliant.
"I owe this win to my veteran players. They turned it on in the three series, in Nairobi especially, when it mattered most. They played their hearts out and that was the reason why we are all smiling now," beamed Ojukwu.The series, that were delayed by Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) due to Usiu participation in the Africa women club started in Morocco, started in Mombasa with KPA going down 59-49 in a Game One stunnerKPA regrouped before their home fans and took Game Two with a close 57-55 margin. Hellen Oketch burried 27 points .Then the series moved to Nairobi for three matches and KPA upstaged the students 60-48 in Game Three as Brenda Angeshi and Oketch managed 17 points a piece.But it was not over as Hilda Indasi who was subdued in the other matches erupted for a game high 23 points to lift USIU to a 76-51 win in Game Four and inch closer to their first ever title.
When everyone thought USIU would break the duck in the decisive Game Five, they collapsed in the last two quarters as KPA laughed all the way to a 60-55 victory.
It was agood ride for KPA teams in this year's championships as the men's side also did well moving to the finals where they lost 3-0 to eventual winners Co-operative Bank of Kenya
CAMEO were on Sunday crowned champions of the Ronald Garura Unity Day tournament held at Richwood Park. The three-day tournament began on Friday with six men and six women teams taking part in the event that was staged in memory of the late national coach who passed away last year.
Cameo won the men's title after winning all their matches in a tournament played on a round-robin basis. Cameo won their opening match when they beat Hustlers 53-37 to start their campaign on a positive note. They went on to dismiss ga 43-15 before they defeated Unicorns 46-35. The Harare based-side then dismissed jbc and Mercenaries 39-21 and 55-27 to clinch the title. Mecenaries were second while jbc settled for third place.
In the women's section, the title went to Lakers who beat jbc 44-29 in the final. On third place was Raiderz. The tournament was organised by Cavaliers in conjunction with the Basketball Union of Zimbabwe buz outgoing competitions director Simon Lawson, said the tournament was a success despite the failure by Plaza Warriors from Namibia to turn up for the event.
"It was exciting and the action was tight. All matches were mouth-watering and Hustlers gave everyone a good run for their money, even in the women's section the matches were good to watch and full of quality. "The veterans came to play and they had their own social competition. There were former Cavaliers players and it was just nice to see them playing again," said Lawson.
Meanwhile, the buz will host a fibaModule Two Young Coaches course starting tomorrow and ending on January 4 in Harare. The course will be conducted by Ronald Owino from Kenya. Lawson said they are expecting the 22 participants who passed last year's Module One to take part.
"We had another course last year in February, the Young Coaches Level One and those who pass come for Module Two and then they get a diploma.
"The reason why it is spaced in a year is that if you pass Module One you are given one year to practice.
"The first course is more about the participants doing the drills.
"It's about learning, the coaches being coached.
"Module Two, you now get 20 people and told to coach them to assess if you have been practising and if you are now able to develop young players.
"The element is to have young coaches to coach young players under the age of 18. We have 22 who qualified from last year and we have invited them all and we have invited the two who did the Olympic Solidarity course.
"Some of them are coming from Bulawayo and most of them are teachers in schools," said Lawson.
KENYA : KPA beat USIU to win Kenya Premier women's crown
KPA Brenda Angechi (no9) leads teammates in celebration after winning the decider.(Photo by Shutterspeed)
USIU Sarah Chan dribbles past KPA Hellen Oketch.(Photo by Shutterspeed)
Kenya Ports Authority,KPA, staged a comeback to beat United States International University - Africa, USIU-A, 60-55 and win the 2013 women premier league title in game five played Monday at the Nyayo National Stadium gymnasium.
Leading 30-17 at the break, USIU-A’s complacency in the second half cost them what was an imminent victory.
The teams started off on equal strength with a 9-9 scoreline in the first quarter. Sarah Chan had two baskets while Hilda Indasi added a three-pointer and two free-throws accounting for USIU-A’s opening points.
KPA scored three sharp three-pointers through Lucy Ohawga’s brace and a single from Helen Oketch.
With only fifty seconds of the quarter remaining, KPA called for the first timeout as they trailed 6-9 and it worked the magic when Ohawga scored the three-pointer that tied the scores.
The second quarter was a USIU-A affair as they ran away with a 21-8 win for the halftime break advantage. In the opening half, KPA was evidently the weaker side both from the scoreline and their physical play that cost them too many fouls.
They conceded thirteen in the first two quarters against USIU-A’s six. The second quarter was the worst for KPA as they gifted USIU-A twelve points from the free-throw line.
Midway the second half, it was clear that the match was headed for overtime as KPA managed to cut down the deficit and level the scores at three different intervals.
From thirteen points down at the end of second quarter, the Dockers won third quarter 20-11 as USIU-A led by four points going to the homestretch. Character won us the game,KPA coach
KPA’s turning point came three minutes to full time when Indasi fouled Joyce Mukhungu as scores tied at 51-51.
Mukhungu scored the resulting two free-throws to give KPA the lead for the first time at 53-51. Exchange of baskets saw the game tied again at 55-55 with over a minute to go.
It took the efforts of Yvonne Akinyi with a basket and a free-throw as well as Oketch’s basket to win the game for KPA in the dying moments.
USIU-A’s George Mayienga was voted the best coach while KPA captain Brenda Angeshi was the most valuable player.
“Character has won the game for us today,” said an elated KPA coach Anthony Ojukwu. “At halftime, I told my girls that talent and skills would win them nothing and they had to develop a positive attitude which really worked.”
Ojukwu singled out Oketch as the best player for the side this season but attributed teamwork and self belief for the triumph.
“Nobody expected this team to make it to the playoffs but here we are today celebrating the win.
They have fought hard all along and as a coach am happy.” KPA’s change of tact in the second half yielded fruits as they conceded six fouls to USIU-A’s ten. Angeshi top scored for KPA with 16 points while Oketch had 11.
Cynthia Irankunda was USIUs top scorer with 15 points and Sarah Chan 13.
The win increased KPAs title tally to eleven making them the most successful club in the country while USIU-A lost their second successive final. The third place playoff tie between Eagle Wings and Sprite Storms was deferred to early next year.
NIGERIA : Gombe Bulls, Kwara Falcons Qualify for DSTV Basketball League
At the end of a weeklong hostility in the National Division 1 Basketball League in Gombe State which served as qualifiers for the elite league, Gombe Bulls and Kwara Falcons have qualified for the elite basketball league.
Gombe Bulls made if from the Savannah Conference while Kwara Bulls qualified from the Atlantic Conference.
The league held from December 16-23 and its conclusion saw the emergence of the two teams promoted to play in the new season of the Dstv Premier League to dunk off early next year.
The promoted teams will replace the two demoted teams from the premiership and the affected teams will be formally announced before the start of the 2013/2014 season.
Some of the teams that took in the championship included Ahip Giants of Kano, Chariots of Lagos, Kwara Falcons, Benue Braves, FCT Rocks, NAF Rockets, Civil Defence, Kano Pyramids and host Gombe Bulls.
A technical meeting was held on 16 December to herald the championship
DEFENDING champions, UNZA Pacers beat Matero Magic in the semi finals of the Zambia Basketball Association (ZBA) 2013 Sprite National championships to set up an exciting final against Napsa Hurricanes.
Shells will defend their women's title against UNZA Honeys during the three series finals to be held at the Olympic Youth Development Centre (OYDC) in Lusaka.
In the men's semi finals, Pacers lost the second game 59-63 to Magic but advanced having won the first match 64-49 to sail through having gained 15 points from the set of two matches played at the weekend.
Hurricanes sealed their place after overcoming LCC Looters 79-78 in a tightly contested first match before recording a 76-66 win in the second match.
And both Pacers and Hurricanes coaches have expressed confidence of emerging champions this weekend.
Pacers coach Cuthbert Tembo said his players were ready to face Hurricanes having beaten and eliminated a stronger side in Matero Magic while Mwape Konsolo described the final as a grudge match to settle old scores against a Pacers side that beat Hurricanes twice in the regular league.
Meanwhile, Shells beat a determined Green Buffaloes to reach the finals where they will face Honeys, who eliminated league newcomers Napsa Breeze.
Shells beat Buffaloes 72-69 in the first game before registering a 79-70 win while Honeys recorded 61-41 and 73-50 wins over Breeze.
Coach Martin Muchena was confident that Shells will go on and defend the title following their emphatic wins over Buffaloes but predicated a tough game against Honeys, which will be a repeat of last year's final.
"Playing the UNZA Honeys in the finals will be tough but we are ready to take them on and retain our title," Muchena said.
SOMALIA : Inter Cities Basketball Tourney Eyes On All Africa
As the interest for the annually-held inter-cities basketball competition is on the increase, the East and Central Africa basketball Federation intends the inclusion of Cities from across the continent into the competition in the near future, according to its head of marketing and media Engineer Bana Ali.
"With respect to our financial capability, the competition currently maximizes 24 cities, but in the near future we are planning a bigger tournament with the attendance of cities across the continent and we hope to reach such goal after we have confirmed a major sponsorship" Engineer Bana Ali said in a press statement Sunday.
"The intention of our president Mr. Simon Msoffe is to broaden the competition as part of his initiative for the promotion of basketball both in the region and in the whole Africa continent" Engineer Bana Ali added in his statement.
The statement noted that the cities which have so far shown their interest for the next year's edition of the event have doubled in accordance with the number of cities attracted by the 2013 event hosted in Kampala.
"This year (2013) the competition attracted atleast 11 cities across the east and central Africa region, whilst 23 cities from different regions in the continent were already listed for the 2014edition of the inter-cities basketball tournament" the press statement added.
Those include: Cairo, Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Mombasa, Eldoret, Mogadishu, Galkayo, Hargeisa, Dar Es Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza,Mbeya, Djibouti, Tanga, Harare, Bujumbura, Kigali, Congo Brazzsaville, Kampala,Entebbe, Jinja, Southren Sudan and Benntieu from South Sudan.
The cities outside the east and central Africa region who are planning to take part in the 16th edition of the tournament are: Cairo (Egypt), Harare (Zimbabwe) and Congo Brazzavile, as the participation of these cities shows that the event is spreading across Africa.
"Two other cities have also shown their interest for the participation of the event, but we have to rethink that, as we cannot reach beyond the limit of 24 cities due to lack of a greater sponsor" Mr. Bana Ali said in his press statement Sunday.
"The inter-cities basketball competition was first launched in 1998 and it was intended to help the promotion of basketball amongst East and Central Africa cities, but as its interest exceeds, the East and Central Africa inter-cities basketball committee intends to put the event before a major audience with the participation of cities across the continent after we have achieved the sponsors we need for enlarging the tournament" the head of marketing and media Engineer Bana Ali indicated in his press statement.
The statement noted that all cities are invited through their respective national federations. "As kind of strengthening the cooperation between the inter-city committee and affiliated federations, the participating cities come through their national federations.--we fully appreciate the cooperative ties between inter-city committee and cities we invite to our events" Engineer Bana Ali noted in his Sunday's press statement.
KPA Brenda Angechi shoots the ball against USIU. (Photo by Shutterspeed)
The new women premier league champion will be crowned on Monday when United States International University, USIU, and Kenya Ports Authority, KPA, meet in game five at the Nyayo gymnasium.
The match that will kick off at 4pm was necessitated after both teams tied at two games all in the best-of-five series playoffs final.
USIU won game one 57-49 and KPA game two 57-55 played last weekend in Mombasa with games three and four taking place in Nairobi on Saturday and Sunday.
KPA took over the series lead on Saturday with a 60-48 win and went to game four with high chances of killing it off early.
It even prompted league organisers to parade trophies and winners medals on Sunday in anticipation of a KPA win.
However, they were all folded back and will await Monday’s decider. In the match, KPA led 34-28 at the breather with 16-11 and 18-17 wins in the first two quarters.
Their dominance prevailed in the second half winning the third and fourth quarters 16-11 and 10-9 respectively. Brenda Angeshi and Helen Oketch top scored for the Dockers with 17 points each while Sarah Chan had 11 for the students.
The win did little to motivate KPA into winning their eleventh title and the first since 2011 without going full length. USIU outplayed them on Sunday with the determination to take the match to the decider clearly evident.
The students, who led 39-28 at halftime, went on to win 76-51 and Monday’s match will be a crucial one for both teams.
Cynthia Irankunda and Zipporah Odhiambo had a great game scoring crucial three-point shots.
Hilda Indasi had a game high 23 points for the students while Sarah Chan scored 16. Angeshi led scores for KPA with 14. USIU will be in the run to win their maiden league title after losing out in last year’s final to Eagle Wings.
DEFENDING champions, UNZA Pacers beat Matero Magic 64-49 to edge closer towards making the finals of the Zambia Basketball Association (ZBA) 2013 Sprite National Championships.
The games being played at the Olympic Youth Development Centre (OYDC) in Lusaka saw Magic starting on a strong note, winning the first quarter 15-12 and Pacers managed to narrow the gap losing the second quarter 30-28.
Pacers' resilience paid off in the third quarter finishing 52-44 tops and wrapped up the tie in the fourth quarter to head into today's final matches been played on the best of two.
Shells 72 Buffaloes 69
Earlier, Shells remained on course to defend their title after coming from two quarters down to stun Green Buffaloes ahead of today's final reverse match.
This tightly contested affair saw Thanzo Musaundwe scoring two winning baskets after Precious Bwali had given Shells a narrow 70-69 lead after being tied 69-all for a long spell.
Meanwhile, Napsa Breeze were up against UNZA Honeys in the other feminine semi final last evening while Napsa Hurricanes squared up against LCC Looters in the second men's semi finals
ZAMBIA : Magic, Pacers face off in season thriller
UNZA Pacers coach Cuthbert Tembo has described the national championships semifinal fixture against rivals Matero Magic as the biggest game of the season. And Magic coach Obert Shamboko says he is ready to dethrone Pacers as national championship title holders. In separate interviews, both coaches described the game as a final before the final. Tembo said the match would not be easy but that both teams had equal chances of going through to the final. "Chances are very high. We won the season-opening tournament and the national championship this year by beating Magic in the final. So we will be ready for them though we know they have played some good basketball this season," Tembo said. "The whole season for both teams comes down to this game because it will define the whole year." Tembo he would love to meet Napsa Hurricanes in the final should his team qualify as he had unfinished business with them. "With all due respect to my childhood club LCC Looters, I have nothing against them but when we make it to the final I would love to meet Hurricanes for personal reasons. It is always entertaining when you play Hurricanes. You are aware of what happened a few weeks ago when we played in the league," he said. But Magic coach Obert Shamboko said he had utmost respect for Pacers because they were defending national champions. He said the chances were fifty-fifty, adding that the best team would carry the day. "When the draw was made I didn't like it but in the end we are ready to face any team. Pacers are a good side and will not be easy to beat," Shamboko said. Pacers and Magic qualified to the semi final of the championships after beating the CEC Cavelliers 88-40 and CBU Comets 91-56 respectively. The other quarter-finals saw LCC Looters beat YMCA 68-43 and Napsa Hurricanes edging Lunga Bullets 98-83. Hurricanes and Looters meet in the other semifinal scheduled for this weekend at OYDC. In the ladies quarter-finals, Mufulira Saints posted a humiliating defeat to Unza Honeys when they went down 106-24 while LCC Lootresses lost 43-63 to Shells and Green Buffaloes sailed through to semi-final without playing after their opponents CBU Robins were disqualified for arriving late at the tournament.
KENYA : Mombasa Could Host Regional Club Event Next Year
KENYA Basketball Federation (KBF) are considering taking next year's East and Central Africa Zone Five Club championships to Mombasa.
Vitalis Gode, the KBF secretary general, said yesterday there is a probability that the coastal city will host the event for the first time in August next year since its inception. "I was in Mombasa over the weekend to look at the possibility of having this tournament there and I intend to give my report to the executive who will make the final decision," Gode said.
He said the newly refurbished courts at Makande Welfare Hall can hold a tournament of such magnitude. The fans will also play a role when the decision is finally made. Urunani (Burundi) and Eagle Wings (Kenya) won the last year's event which was staged in Bujumbura.
Meanwhile, Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) recovered to pip United States International University (USIU) 57-55 in the women's play-off finals Game One clash at the Makande Welfare hall. The porters, who lost Game One 57-49 the previous day, sailed to a 13-11 first quarter advantage. However, the "Flames" engulfed the host with a strong 16-9 performance to take the second quarter for a 27-22 cushion at the breather. After the resumption, it was USIU who were on the ascendancy again building a 21-15 edge in the third quarter before KPA took advantage of poor fielding to charge back into contention with 20-7 win in the decisive quarter.
Rallying KPA for this crucial win that tied the five game series at 1-1 was Hellen Oketch who chalked up game high 23 points while national team playmaker Brenda Angeshi nailed another 15. For USIU, who will now host the winners in Nairobi this weekend, Sarah Chan and Africa's three-point queen, Hilda Indasi were the key as they pumped in a 12 points each.
Nigeria: Mark D Ball - Nollywood Stars to Take On Celebrity Players
The annual Mark D Ball Basketball tournament will hold in Otukpo from December 26-31, with the Nollywood Stars going against a celebrity team of basketballers in a friendly game to open the tournament.
The Mark D Ball tournament which started as "Save the Game" about 14 years ago, has been steadily integrated as a regular menu on the Nigerian calendar such that basketball enthusiasts highly anticipate it.
The event, which is supported by Senate President David Mark, provides employment for youths from Benue State and Nigeria, in addition to exposing the host community to business opportunities.
The tournament will feature teams from all over the country and from some West African nations. Blame it on Experience, featuring the likes of Tunji Awojobi, Ejike Ugboaja and Ogoh Odaudu won cup last year after defeating a team from Benin Republic. Lagos Dolphin won the female version by seeing off the challenge of Lagos Pearls. Head Technical Unit of the competition, Obande Ogbole, said 12 male and 10 female teams drawn from across the country will be attracted to the competition.
Ogbole also noted that the platform will benefit children from the orphanage homes as they will constitute some of the kids that will feature in a clinic to learn the rudiments of basketball. Over 500 kids will enroll at the academy this year and will draw from the experience of international and local experts on how to develop their skills
Liberia: Unfamiliar Court - Liberia's Oilers Bow Out After Five Defeats in Tunisia: What Went Wrong
Sensational LPRC Oilers are out of the 28th edition of the Fiba-Africa basketball club championship, which kicked-off in Sousse, Tunisia on December 12.
Oilers recorded their fifth defeat on Tuesday after heavily going down to Egypt's Sporting Club of Alexandria by 65 to 101 pointson match day five, leaving the Liberian champions to play classification games before heading to Monrovia.
Gabon's Tally BB picked-up their first win by beating Oilers by 83 to 61 points on Monday.
Mozambique's Ferroviaro Beira, who lost to Tunisia's Etoile Sportive du Sahel by 49 to 75 points in their first game on December 12, beat Oilers by 86 to 67 points on December 14.
There were 22 points for Glen Nimely, 16 points for Baimba Monabah and 10 points for Yamussa Kamara, including five rebounds.
The Bing brothers of Jethro and John scored five rebounds respectively.
Oilers then lost to Etoile by 61 to 83 points on December 13 with former Croatia international Dalibor Bagaric, a seven-footer, imposing his NBA and European experience by contributing more than 30 points.
Algeria's Club Sportif Constantinois may have shown the path of defeat when beating Oilers by 84 to 64 points in game one on December 12.
Oilers were high on confidence following their qualification from the preliminaries held in Monrovia in October but their dismal runs have generated a mixed reaction on facebook.
"I know all Liberian basketball lovers are down hearted with the results coming from Tunisia but let me say this [to] my people back home and all around the world.
"Our teams will always get defeated whenever we go to these tournaments all because our league is underrated. Our gyms are not that [good] to encourage good players and teams from outside to come [and] play with us.
"If I am [not] mistaken, Liberia is the only country now playing on concrete floods. All of these affect our games and players. Thanks to LPRC, NPA and some other smaller teams' president that are trying to [improve] our league and players.
"I know from whence I speak because I [have] been there so many times and got defeated all because of these same reasons. So I will like to appeal to the government to please build us a very good gym with good floods that improve our games & players," posted NPA Pythons head coach Matthew Gbamore on December 15.
"The court is just a tiny part of the problem. All those guys were doing well but it had no long term sustainability. It was just for a season because they were not getting any returns; maybe political popularity.
"My point is innovation can upgrade the league to a better level. LBA [Liberia Basketball Association]/team administrators need professional advice for a marketing strategy. Coaches/trainers need to be trained at the highest level," Willie Prout added.
Sporting Club, Tally BB, CS Constantinois and Etoile have qualified for the quarter-finals with the completion of the first round games.
The grand finale will be played on December 21.
FORMER Kingdom Cavaliers players and the Basketball Union of Zimbabwe are hoping to hold the first Ronald Garura Unity Day tournament in Harare in memory of the late national coach. The tournament is set to run from this Friday to Sunday with clubs from different provinces and a team from Namibia participating.
BUZ competitions director, Simon Lawson, said preparations for the tournament were underway.
"We are trying to put up a Ronald Garura Unity Day tournament. We have clubs from Harare, Manicaland, Bulawayo and Gweru.
"We had also invited two teams from Zambia but now they are saying they won't be able to come but there is one team from Namibia and they have confirmed that they are coming. Zambia are having their national championships.
"The whole idea is to honour Garura through the tournament and have people come together and celebrate his life.
Garura, a former national player and coach, died in October last year.
Meanwhile, the basketball mother body will hold elections during their congress in Harare on December 29 to elect a new executive. The outgoing executive led by Addison Chiware got into office in 2009 and their four-year term expired in September when a notice was sent out for the forthcoming elections.
RWANDA : Ferwaba to organise 3 on 3 Streetball Tournament
The new game format will see the likes of Espoir point guard Aristide Mugabe (left) display off their skills. Times Sport/ T. Kisambira.
Rwanda Basketball Federation (Ferwaba) and Crowd Management Protocol (CMP) have entered a partnership to organise Street Ball from December 21 - 22 at Amahoro indoor stadium in Remera, Kigali. The 3 on 3 Basketball tournament will be played in three categories; Juniors (U18) as well as the seniors Men and Women. Each team is composed of four players (three players on the field and one substitute) and they play for 10 minutes. The 3 on 3 is a new game format endorsed by Federation of International Basketball Association (Fiba) as part of a mission to develop and promote basketball in line with Fiba’s vision to make basketball the most popular community sports discipline across the world. According to Ferwaba officials, this competition will help them select a team of young players, who will feature for U-18 team, which will compete in All Africa Youth Games 2014 in Gaborone, Botswana. The registration of teams started on Tuesday at Ferwaba headquarters at Amahoro stadium in Remera. Teams will be registered according TO the ages of player categories (U18 or seniors) Men and Women. All the U-18 players must provide their National IDs or student cards.
KENYA : KPA, USIU Level as women playoffs final begin
Kenya Ports Authority, KPA, and United States International University, USIU, ladies basketball teams are tied at one game all in the women premier playoffs final that got underway over the weekend in Mombasa.
KPA enjoyed home ground advantage with games one and two of their best-of-five series being played at the Makande gymnasium.
USIU won game one 57-49 on Saturday but the hosts leveled series a day later with a slim 57-55 win. From their game one loss, it was a must-win situation for the Dockers in game two which they managed to get back into contention.
Games three and four will be played this weekend in Nairobi when the new champion will be crowned to succeed dethroned Eagle Wings.
On Sunday, USIU led KPA 27-22 at the breather and it was the latter’s comeback that demonstrated their fighting spirit heading to the homestretch. KPA won the first quarter 13-11 with USIU carrying home the second 16-9.
Upon restart, USIU proved their superiority once more winning third quarter 21-15 but complacency in the fourth saw KPA win 20-7.
Hilda Indasi and Sarah Chan top scored for USIU with 12 points apiece while Helen Oketch had a game high 23 points for KPA. Eagles/Storms face off for third place
Both teams will now face off in game three on Saturday and game four on Sunday. In case of a tie, the decider will be played on Monday with all matches taking place at the Nyayo National Stadium gymnasium.
Eagle Wings and Sprite Storms will play each other on Saturday for the third place playoff. Meanwhile, the Nairobi Basketball Association, NBA, 2013 season came to a close over the weekend at the Railways Club.
Dankind Academy emerged the overall winner in the men category as JKUAT Juja came on as the first runner up and MKU Thika was second runner up.
In the ladies category, Ulinzi Blades was the overall winner as Footprints came in as the first runner up and Gladiators as the second runner up.
Dankind and JKUAT Juja will now play in the KBF Division One league next season while Ulinzi Blades join the women premier.
In the individual awards, Emmanuel Atega of Dankind and Bridgit Nanzala of Ulinzi were voted the most valuable players in the men and women categories respectively.
The best defensive award went to Nick Oyoo of JKUAT for men and Seline Okumu of Footprints for ladies.
Don Bosco's Joel Atebe with 431 points was the top scorer for men while Nanzala with 414 points was the ladies category top scorer.
Isaiah Ater of Upper Hill was the men’s top three-points scorer with 45 treys while Dottie Owino of Gladiators topped in the ladies side with 17.
In the best free-throw shooters award, Atebe emerged tops in the men category with 74 points as Mercy Chepkoi of JKUAT scooped the ladies accolade with 50 points. The new NBA season is expected to start early next year.
COPPERBELT teams have been eliminated from the Zambia Basketball Association (ZBA) 2013 Sprite National Championships after losing their respective quarter-final matches at the Olympic Youth Development Centre (OYDC) in Lusaka at the weekend.
Defending champions, UNZA Pacers lead the midlands sides into the semi-finals to be played this weekend while women defending champions Shells head the teams into clinching slots in the last four.
In the men's games, Pacers beat Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) Cavaliers 88-40 as Matero Magic cruised past Copperbelt University Comets with a 91-56 with Lusaka City Council Looters beating YMCA Stingers 68-43 while Napsa Hurricanes beat Lunga Bullets 98-83.
The women category saw Shells beat Lootresses 63-43, UNZA Honeys were 106-24 winners over Mufulira Saints as CEC Queens suffered a 94-17 defeat at the hands of Napsa Breeze, while Green Buffaloes were handed a free passage into the semi-finals after CBU Robins arrived at OYDC an hour late.
Meanwhile, ZBA vice-president north, Andrew Nyirenda attributed the poor performance of the Copperbelt teams in the championships to lack of strong and competitive league as well as trained coaches.
"The team's performance in the league was below par rendering them not strong competitors for this championship.
"And I also feel that the coaches are somewhat technically behind and lack financial support to enable them train more which greatly contributed," he said.
But Nyirenda said he was happy that the northern region was still making strides in coming up with a programme for coaches to equip them with right skills.
NIGERIA : Division One Basketball Dunks Off in Gombe
The Gombe Sports Commission has concluded arrangements to host the 2013 National Division one league which will dunk off beginning from today to 23 December.
It is expected that two teams will be promoted to play in the new season of the Dstv Premier League dunking off early next year.
The promoted teams will replace the two demoted teams from the premiership and the affected teams will be formally announced before the start of the 2013/2014 season.
Some of the teams expected to fight for a return to premiership action include AHIP Giants of kano,Chariots of Lagos, Kwara Falcons, Benue Braves, FCT Rocks, NAF Rockets ,Civil Defence, Kano Pyramids and host Gombe Bulls.
A technical meeting is slated for this today.
Many Juruni. He led City Oilers to their maiden basketball league title.To the City Oilers’ management team, Mandy Juruni is the best basketball coach in Uganda, lest their general manager Silver Rugambwa might add “by far.” They are not shy about their praise for Juruni. “We have the best coach in the country – he is the national team coach,” club president Mohammed Ghedi emphasized.
There is a lot you can use to back the soft-spoken Juruni. On Friday, he led Oilers to their first national title in their first season in the Airtel National Basketball League.
Oilers beat record champions Falcons 74-62 for a 4-3 series result. This title is a totally new feeling for a club formed only two years ago but not for Juruni. This is his fifth crown in all having won with Makerere Sparks (2003 as an assistant coach), KCCA Leopards (2007) and UCU Lady Canons (2010), in the women’s league, and Riham Warriors last year.Juruni has now led a team to the playoff finals for four years running. “The best thing is to understand your team’s strength and the players,” Juruni said. “It’s (this title) very sweet,” Juruni, who was part of the Charging Rhino team that won the league in 2007, said. “Every championship is different but this was the biggest challenge personally to coach a team that had just come up. “I am lucky may be.”
The next challenge will be how Juruni rebuilds next season after ‘big man’ Kami Kabange has left. It helps that Juruni, a brilliant point guard in his heyday at Kitante Hill School, Rhino and KIU Titans, coaches the most organized team
Besides Juruni, the players, Ghedi and Rugambwa, cannot under score the unsung hero of this team, Grace Kwizera, himself a peripheral player. “Grace is the emotional leader of the team,” club captain Andrew Tendo, himself rarely active, noted. Kwizera, who wasn’t on the bench for Game Seven, is often seen taking care of anyone hurt or just talking to lift their spirits.
UGANDA : City Oilers beat Falcons for maiden championship
Photo Credits: Daily Monitor
Game 7: City Oilers 74-62 Falcons (Oilers win series 4-3)
Pretty good is quite the understatement. Kami Kabange and Jimmy Enabu brought home the first championship with City Oilers on Friday night in a 74-62 Game 7 victory over the Falcons with a performance that was testament to what the pair has been all through the year and the finals.
Kami poured in game high 27 points and Enabu added 20 points as the City Oilers made it one out of one in their first season in the premier basketball division.
“Well, what can i say? I am lost of words... It has been a tough season and here we are. I am glad for the team” a joyous Oilers guard, Jimmy Enabu told Kawowo Sports.
After a balanced and cautious first quarter from both teams in which Oilers were caught on the shot clock twice, the game started opening up and taking shape in the second frame – Oilers limited mistakes, Falcons couldn’t shoot.
“We didn’t capitalise on our opportunities and they (Oilers) did. You have to give them credit for that” Falcons forward Steven Omony said.
Oilers out scored Falcons 15-10 and went into the half time break leading by 7 points (31-24). The champions opened the third period with a 6-2 run to take a double digit lead that they twice stretched to 19 points (47-28 and 55-36) and ultimately 21 points (58-37) at the end of the quarter.
“We didn’t have consistence in our concentration and that dealt us a big blow” Omony who scored team high15 points added.
The Falcons tried to rally back in the final period, starting the quarter with an 11-0 run and trimmed the deficit to 10 points (48-58) with 6:01 and did not get any closer than 10 points as Kabange kept pushing Oilers into maintaining the double digit lead.
“It was always going to be a tall order coming back from such a deficit” Falcons’ coach Gad Eteu admitted.
“We gave away a big lead in the last game (Game 6) and we couldn’t repeat the same mistake in a championship game” Oilers coach, Mandy Juruni said on Falcons come back.
Abdullahi Ramadhan scored 14 points, 8 coming in the fourth quarter during the push. Philip Ameny matched game high 15 points, 10 in the fourth quarter. the big man picked 10 rebounds.
Former Kenya basketball champions Kenya Ports Authority – KPA - will this afternoon take on hot USIU Flames in the first match of the 2013 KBF finals playoffs at their Makande Home in Mombasa. Flames edged out defending champions Eagle Wings in the semi finals while KPA had a relatively easy opposition against Storms.
The first match of the best of 5 will kick off at 4:00pm at the Makande Hall, the second match being played at the same venue on Sunday. USIU will then host the three final matches in Nairobi with an advantage and KPA have an opportunity to drill the first two matches at home.
Still hot from their continental experience in Morocco a couple of weeks back, USIU Flames come to this match with a match fitness advantage boosted by the top form of Hilda Indasi formerly of KPA and Emma Nyakweba.
With ten titles, KPA will be seeking to reclaim the title they last lost to Eagle Wings while USIU are out to become the first University side to win the KBF League title.
Cooperative Bank retained the men’s title after defeating KPA men in the finals.
LIBERIA : LPRC Oilers Lose By 20 Points in Fiba-Africa Tournament in Tunisia
LPRC Oilers have been beaten by Club Sportif Constantinois of Algeria in the 28th edition of the Fiba-Africa basketball club championship, which kicked- in Sousse, Tunisia on Thursday.
Oilers lost by 64 to 84 points to the Algerian champions in what started to be a competitive match.
The Liberian champions lost the first period by 13 to 23 points but bounced back to win the second period by 21 to 16 points, ending the first half by 34 to 39 points in favor of the north Africans.
Back from the break, they narrowly lost the third period by 22 to 28 points but they must have run out of steam in the final period to lose by a 20-point margin.
Samuel Davidson, alias Bull Dog, was one of the standout performers for the Oil Boys.
In group A's early kick, Ferroviaro Beira of Mozambique lost to Tunisia's Etoile Sportive of Sahel by 49 to 75 points.
The completion of the first round tie between Tally BB of Gabon and Sporting Club d'Alexandrie of Egypt was in progress when we went to press.
Al Alhy Benghazi of Libya beat Malabo Kings of Equatorial Guinea by 92 to 76 points in group B while the Angolan affair between Libolo and Primeiro de Agosto was also scheduled for Thursday.
The other match between Nigeria's Kano Pillars and Urunani of Burundi has been scheduled for Friday.
Sporting Club, CS Constantinois and Al Alhy of zone one and Ferroviaro of zone seven were regarded as wild cards or gained automatic qualification.
Pillars and Oilers qualified from zone three's pre-tournament held in Monrovia in October while Malabo Kings and Tally BB progressed from group four.
Urunani qualified from zone five and Libolo and Primeiro progressed from zone six.
The four first teams of each group will qualify for the quarter finals with the grand finale set for December 21.
COACH Martin Muchena has hailed Shells for winning the 2013 Zambia Basketball Association (ZBA) women south league.
Muchena said he was happy that the team remained focussed to retain the title even after a disappointing showing in the FIBA Zone Six basketball championships that Zambia hosted last month.
He said in an interview that he was now expecting Shells to head into the weekend Sprite national basketball championships full of confidence having gained enough experience during the Zone Six Games.
"The team is ready for the championships because I believe they have learnt a lot since that poor performance during the Zone Six Championships. They reacted well towards winning the league, they never lost focused and I hope they will take that same mentality into the weekend championships," he said.
Shells finished top with 33 points ahead of UNZA Honeys, who had played two games less but the former had unassailable points to be overtaken at the top of the table.
And ZBA national technical coordinator Lovemore 'Porterfield' Sikaale in an interview said women basketball has significantly improved in Zambia.
Sikaale said ZBA has witnessed a comeback of women basketball after it's dwindle in the past years and was confident that success would soon start following the various teams especially when competing at international level.
"There was a time when women basketball became inactive when we had just about four teams competing in the league. But the ZBA has seen an increase to seven teams participating in the league which is a good sign of better things to come for the sport," he said.
Sikaale also said the coming of new teams like Spartress in the league is an indication that women basketball is heading in the right direction in terms of participation.
He said the just ended 2013 FIBA Zone Six Championships played a big motivating role and ZBA has seen the eagerness and desire in female players to get physical in sharpening their playing skills unlike in the past.
Shells topped the league that also had Honeys, Green Buffaloes, LCC Lootresses, Napsa Breeze, Hot Spurs and Spartress.
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) basketball team has won the male category of the basketball events of the on-going National Youth Games (NYG).
FCT edged their opponents, Ogun State 79-56 in the final game decided at the basketball court, Package B of the Abuja National Stadium Wednesday.
The team took the game to its opponents from the blast of the whistle, racing to a 26-10 lead in the first quarter.
The boys from Ogun State rallied back in the 2nd quarter to atone for their woeful first quarter with a slim 21-18 win but it didn't count much as FCT won the third quarter; 16-6 before drawing the final one; 19-19 to ensure a 79-56 victory. Head Coach of the FCT team, Tunde Ayodeji, said apart from their adequate preparation, God was also on their side.
"We trained hard and with God on our side, we had the confidence that we were going to win. It was really a tough match but we excelled at the end of the day." Kaduna defeated Delta 62-28 to win the third place match.
In the female category, Delta state female basketball team comfortably thrashed its counterpart from Abia 72-22 to finish top of the log.
Delta made it to the final after beating Taraba 38-26 in the semi-finals on Tuesday. Delta C, Gbubemi Fregene, boasted after the match that he was not surprised about the win because his team prepared well for the NYG.
"I was not surprised that we won this match because we had adequate preparations for this Games," Fregene said.
In the third place match, Taraba walked-over Benue after the team could not present a complete team of at least five players.
Assistant Secretary of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Elijah Adamu, said some players were screened out from the Benue team after Team Taraba protested before the match that Benue has over-aged players.
"We made inquiries and found out that five out of the nine players they presented were over-aged, so they were left with only four players, which is not acceptable. Certificates were given to successful teams at the end of the competition.
Nigeria: Team Delta Wins Final of Female Basketball Event
The Delta female Basketball team on Wednesday emerged champions in the female category of the basketball event at the ongoing National Youth Games (NYG) in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Delta team thrashed its counterpart from Abia, 72-22, in a match that appeared too simple for the Asaba team.
Delta which had earlier on Tuesday defeated Taraba, 38-26, to qualify for the event's final, was on rampage throughout the match.
Delta's coach, Gbugbemi Fregene, said after the match that he was not surprised about the win because his team prepared well for the NYG.
"I was not surprised that we won this match because we had adequate preparations for the Games.
"We had a good training ground and our welfare was well taken care of, so we had no other option than to win," Fregene said.
In the third place match, Taraba walked-over Benue after Benue could not present a complete basketball team of at least five players.
The Assistant Secretary of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Elijah Adamu, tsaid that Team
UCU Lady Canons celebrate with their trophy after clinching this year’s Castle Lite playoff series. Photo by Ismail KezaalaKAMPALA- Maureen Amoding had a message for her teammates after their spineless 84-48 loss to KCCA Leopards in Game Five last week.
“The title will not come easy. We have to fight for it,” the UCU Lady Canons’ guard told her teammates. It’s the kind of reminder they needed.
Amoding got the response she desired. UCU dethroned KCCA Leopards with an 84-61 victory in Game Six on Wednesday to win the seven-game Castle Lite playoff series 4-2 and reclaim the championship.With the women’s game not as popular as the men’s, the only dampener is that many fans had left the Lugogo MTN Arena by the time UCU coasted to their fourth title.
Had they stayed, chants of ‘MVP MVP MVP!’ would have been appropriate whenever centre Peace Proscovia attacked the hoop. She scored 21 points and 13 rebounds. Like KCCA’s Martha Soigi, Proscovia missed the last two games of the series while away in Singapore with the national netball team.
While they were on the same flight, they weren’t on the same footing. Soigi had 17 points and five rebounds though KCCA choked as a team other than Flavia Oketcho’s 15. After the near-perfect game on Sunday, the challenge for coach Ronnie Owino was always going to be how to keep the players close to that level. On the other hand, there is no way UCU, now champions in three of the last four seasons, were going to get worse.
Frances Nabulobi scored 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in one of her best games since the knee injuries of 2011, Amoding 15 and Purity Odhiambo added 12.There is no doubt coach Boniface Okello has the best team and if winning all 26 regular season games showed it, this title only confirmed it.
Former champs 2013 – UCU Lady Canons 2012 – KCCA Leopards 2011 – UCU 2010 – UCU 2009 – KCCA 2008 - UCU 2007 - KCCA 2006 - Lady Bucks 2005 – A1 Challenge 2004 – Lady Bucks 2003 – Makerere Sparks 2002 – Lady Bucks 2001 – Lady Bucks 2000 – Lady Bucks 1999 – Lady Bucks 1998 – Lady Bucks
Forward Steven ‘Dux’ Mwesigye (L) had a very good game for Falcons as they forced game seven tonight. Right is City Oilers Samuel Kalwanyi. Photo by Ismail Kezaala. KAMPALA- It felt like Falcons were always going to win Game Six after City Oilers took a 3-2 lead in the Castle Lite playoffs final series, almost inevitable. Neither team has won two in a row. And when they won 75-63, blowing the game open in the fourth quarter on Wednesday night.
Few, besides the Oilers’ handful of fans and officials, would have been disappointed as champions are more enthralling, at least to the neutrals when earned this way.
There is a Game Seven at the Lugogo MTN Arena today to decide this year’s national basketball champions, the third time in four years a decider has been needed.Coaches – Mandy Juruni (Oilers) and Gad Eteu (Falcons) – will want to preach basics and simplicity but something they cannot insert now is the will. Juruni is sticking to what is missing. “We shall have to rebound better for us to win. Hopefully, we will be better tomorrow (today).”
Falcons have bossed the boards for two of the last three games with margins of 44 -23, 51-41 and 39-40.
Not even a slow start to the game could keep Falcons from forcing a decider like Stephen Omony had promised after they trailed by as many as 16 in the first half. They outscored Oilers 47-30 in the second half on the back of Abdullahi Ramadhan’s 25 points and Philip Ameny’s 17 including two electrifying dunks.
Omony only had 11 points but the nine rebounds and six assists were crucial to get his mates rolling while keeping Kami Kabangu to 12 points and 10 rebounds. Just like Falcons restored Geoff Omondi to the team with pain-killing injections, Oilers will do the same for Ramadhan Arou who sat out Game Six.
Their inside game is hurting so bad that they only made nine visits to the free throw line against Falcons’ 32 visits on Wednesday.
We are always reminded that the team which wants it more wins but this will be about who handles the pressure in front of a capacity crowd.
THE STORY SO FAR Game One: Oilers won the series opener 74-72 on the back of Kami Kabange’s 21 points and 11 rebounds. Falcons missed 26 of 26 free throws Game Two: Abdullahi Ramadhan scored 30 points to spark Falcons to an 84-76 win Game Three: Kami’s 23 first half points gave Oilers a 2-1 series lead with an 83-73 victory Game Four: Omony scored 18 in the first quarter for Falcons to win 86-81 and tie the series. He finished with 29. Game Five: Oilers recovered from a 14-point hole to take a 3-2 lead with 80-76 result with reserve Samuel Kalwanyi contributing 12 points and 12 boards Game Six: Falcons came from 16 points down to win 75-63 and push this into a Game Seven
Coach Ryan Turcott was introduced to basketball right from childhood. The New Times/ T. Kisambira
AMERICAN-BORN coach Ryan Turcott has beefed up efforts to help in the development of basketball through talent search and training of coaches. Turcott has been holding training camps aimed at talent detection at Cercle Sportif de Kigali. Atleast 90 boys and girls aged between 12-17 years have been part of this training. He is also working with the local basketball federation to pick the next U-18 team on top of building a partnership with Rwandan Universities that teach sport and physical education. The central focus is to help develop the coaches, who are essential in providing players with the proper skills to be successful. “This program is not about me. It is about the people, coaches, and children of Rwanda. Sport has provided me with so much in my life and I want to use it to help others as well.” “Basketball is picking up so fast in Rwanda. That is good for the country so we should continue to work hard for the young players,” added Turcott who is planning to return back to USA later this month.
LIBERIA : Basketball Showdown in Monrovia This Weekend
What is expected to be a classical basketball display will this Saturday hit the Sports Commission on Broad Street when four of Liberia's leading basketball clubs parade their veterans.
The one- day tournament organized by some former players will bring together veterans from top four clubs. They include: Barrolle, Invincible Eleven, LPRC Oilers and Uhuru Kings. Already, the news of the tournament has spread like wide fire.
Former LPRC Oiler power center Vesselle Yarkpazuo has arrived in the country from DR. Congo for the tournament and another former center of Oliers Burleigh Porte will arrive in the country on Thursday.
Some former players expected to future on Saturday are: Philip Wekie Doe, Reid Warner, Nathaniel Naplah, Bachir Toure, Junior Nah, Raphael Quaye, Tamba Boakai, Richelieu Allison and Boniface Satu. Others are Jacob Kabakollie, Bone Wilson, James Lee, and James Potter amongst others.
The one day tournament will future three matches. Ticket for the game is 100.00
NIGERIA : Taraba's Male Basketball Team Lose Points
Taraba's male basketball team has lost its 47-17 win over Team Kaduna for fielding an ineligible player at the ongoing National Youth Games (NYG), an official said yesterday.
Elijah Adamu, the Assistant Secretary of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
He said the federation's jury convened for the NYG discovered that one of Taraba's players had competed in a competition of a higher age grade. Adamu said it was discovered that Phimwanala Danladi had competed in the 18th National Sports Festival (NSF) held in Lagos in 2012.
"After their match, Team Kaduna filed a protest that one of the Team Taraba players had competed in the NSF and, from our inquiry, we found this to be true. Although, the player is 17 years old from the records of the NSF that we obtained, but one of the rules of this NYG is that a player who had competed in any higher tournament like NSF will not be eligible," Adamu said.
KENYA : USIU Take On Hosts KPA in Play-Off Final in Mombasa
UNITED States International University (USIU) travel to Mombasa, where they face off with home girls Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) in the play-off finals this weekend. According to the fixtures released by Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) competitions secretary Joseph Amoko, the biggest game in the women's calendar will be played at the Makande Welfare Hall on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
"Because KPA have the home court advantage, we will play Game 1, Game 2 and Game 3 in Mombasa before the porters travel to Nairobi for a possible Game 4 and even 5 on the weekend of December 21-22," said Amoko.
The finals were pushed ahead following the students' engagement in the 19th Africa Club Championships for women that ended in Meknes, Morocco last Friday.
USIU finished fifth in the eight team tournament that was won by Angolan side, Inter Clube. KPA had locked out Sprite Storm 3-0 while USIU came back from a 1-0 deficit against then champions Eagle Wings to claim the best of five series 3-1.
KPA will hope to capitalise on their impeccable home record to stem the USIU tide. The series will very much revolve around shooting sensation Hilda Indasi, who was named the best three point shooter in the Africa championships. She will backed up by national team-mate Emma Nyakweba and Burundian play-maker, Cynthia Irankunda.
KENYA : Dankind Are NBA Champs After Running Over Jkuat
Dankind Academy are the 2013 Nairobi Basketball Association (NBA) men champions after beating Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUATS) 40-37 in a closely fought Game Three encounter at the Nyayo Stadium gymnasium.
Dominant coach John Coffino charges won the title on a clean note by sweeping Jkuat 3-0 in the best of five finals series. Dankind had romped to a 43-22 Game One win before posting 56-41 victory in Game Two.
The encounter got off to an explosive start with the 'Straycats' aware that nothing except a win would force Game Four and give them a chance to keep the series alive. The combination of forwards Emmanuel Atega, James Ongwae and James Mathiang played a key role to ensure Coffino's boys won the title in only their debut.
By the end of the third quarter, JKUAT pulled to within 29-36 advantage but Dankind refused to be cowed as they frustrated every effort by the losers to mount a come back. Dankind Academy's leading scorer Emmanuel Atega collected a game high of 14 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Mathiang contributed another 10 points. JKUATS were led by Nick Oloo who nailed 10 with Guyton Kijuba posting 8 in that loss. Both teams will continue playing in the league next year as they failed to secure promotion during the provincial play-offs held in Mombasa.
Ulinzi "Blades" had earlier won the ladies title after they beat self supporting Footprints 3-0. The two teams gained automatic promotion to the women's Premier League.
GAMBIA : Former Gambian Basketball Player Urges Federation to Re-Energise Basketball
Elizabeth Bahoum-Mendy, former Gambian basketball player, has urged the Gambia Basketball Association to be more aggressive in going back to the school system, to re-introduce grass-roots basketball, especially with female players, to have very good players for the country's national teams
UGANDA : City Oilers edge close to title as ruthless Leopards claw back
Falcons 76-80 City Oilers (Oilers lead series 3-2) KCCA Leopards 84-48 UCU Lady Canons (Lady Canons lead series 3-2)
While every basket is not cheered like it is a game winner as it has been nearly the case in recent finals, you can’t take away the fact that City Oilers – Falcons finals have been as intriguing and still will.
With series tied 2-2 going into the fifth game of seven and chance to edge closer to championship on the radar it was bound to get even better – indeed it was.
City Oilers overcame an erratic second quarter and scored 49 points in the next 20 minutes to beat Falcons 80-76 to pull within a game of winning the title in their debut season in Uganda’s premier basketball division.
Kami Kabange scored game high 24 points and picked 12 rebounds to lead the way for Oilers, Jimmy Enabu added 16 points, Samuel Kalwanyi contributed 12 points and 12 rebounds off the bench and James Okello chipped in with 13 points.
In a series where no team has won back-to-back games, Falcons now find themselves in two must win games if they are to increase their championships tally.
Steven Omony paced Falcons with 20 points, Philip Ameny contributed 18 points, Serge Kabangu added 12 points and pulled down game high 15 rebounds and Peter Elungant had 12 points.
Meanwhile Claire Lamunu scored 23 points and blocked 4 shots, Flavia Oketcho had 17 points and 7 rebounds, Rebecca Akullo added 13 points and 10 rebounds, and the ruthless Leopards blew-out UCU Lady Canons 84-48 in game 5 for the most lopsided win in the best-of-seven playoffs finals.
The Leopards hit more than fifty percent of their shots from inside the arc overall and were up by 20 points (22-2)after the first period, 33 points (45-12) at half time and all was nothing but done at this point as UCU couldn’t keep up with KCCA’s offense.
Purity Odhiambo led UCU’s poor offense with 14 points and 14 rebounds and was the only Lady Canon who reached double figures. Larraine Akiny contributed 5 points and 11 rebounds.
The Lady Canons hit a disappointing 11-of-46 attempts from inside the arc and 17-of-42 from the line.
Muhaimuna Namuwaya who – again stepped in for Martha Soigi picked game high 18 rebounds as the defending champions un-usually crashed UCU on the boards 60-47.
UGANDA : Omony drops 29 points as Falcons level series
Omony (L) poured in 29 pointsPhoto Credits: Daily Monitor
Falcons 86-81 City Oilers (Series tied 2-2) KCCA Leopards 28-36 UCU Lady Canons (Lady Canons lead series 3-1)
Every time you expect Steven Omony to turn in a big performance he will exactly do that. The forward scored game high 29 points picked 7 rebounds handed out four helpers to help Falcons beat City Oilers 86-81 to level the best-of-seven finals series at 2.
Philip Ameny added 14 points including a follow-up hammer down that got the crowd up on a rather quiet night at YMCA. The big man also matched team high 7 boards. Abdullahi Ramadhan contributed 11 points and Herbert Akitah had 10.
Falcons controlled the game from start and stretched their lead up 14 points and City Oilers only came as close as 6 points with four minutes in the last frame and then it was composure for Falcons till the final buzzer.
Arou Ramadhan led City Oilers with 17 points and 7 rebounds. The power forward’s season may be over after picking up an injury. Jimmy Enabu matched team high 17 points while Andrew Opio and Kami Kabange contributed 12 points apiece.
Meanwhile UCU Lady Canons moved into a game away from claiming the women’s title following their 36-28 game four win over KCCA Leopards that saw them limit the defending champions to 2 points in the fourth quarter.
Lorraine Akiny the only player to reach double figures scored game high 10 points to lead the way for Lady Canons who have now won three in a row after dropping the opening game of the series. Purity Odhiambo added 9 points and hauled in 21 rebounds. Moreen Amoding contributed 9 points.
Flavia Oketcho led Leopards with 9 points. Claire Lamunu added 8 points and picked 8 rebounds. Rebecca Akullo chipped in with 7 points and Muhayimina Namuwaya picked 11 rebounds. Game fives will be played on Sunday at YMCA.
Kenya: Dankind Academy Takes On JKUAT in Game Three of NBA Play Offs
Dankind Academy takes on Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) in Game Three of the Nairobi Basketball Association (NBA) play off finals at Railways Club. Dankind, who are already leading 2-0 in the best of five series after posting 56-41 and 43-22 wins a week ago, are tipped to beat the students for the title in only their debut. JKUATS, who have not lived up to their billing must play the games of their lives if they have to win three straight sets to be crowned 2013 winners.
Leading the Dankind onslaught in their first quest for a provincial title charge will be key scorer Emmanuel Atega, James Mathiang, Ayuel Garang and Jared Ouma. JKUATS will rely upon the exploits of Guyton KLijuba, Michael Munene, Nick Oloo and Caleb Odhiambo.
Ulinzi "Blades" have already claimed the 2013 women's crown after they beat Footprints 3-0 at Nairobi Railways Club two weeks ago.
Kabange (R) shoots over Falcons’ Herbert Arkhita (L) on Wednesday. Photo by Ismail Kezaala.
A team of Falcons’ experience should not flinch at going 2-1 down in a best-of-seven series against newcomers City Oilers.
But after a listless show in Game Three of the 2013 finals at YMCA on Wednesday night, Falcons find themselves teetering on the brink.
It was apparent after the opening quarter that Gad Eteu’s side were not up for the challenge.
And once Oilers stretched the margin to 28-12, itwas clear that the game had the markings of a blowout.
Falcons were out of their depth. If you flip the coin, Oilers were certainly immense. And they deserve their due credit.
However, it was mostly a Falcons no-show.
After two close games that were split, Game Three was anything but.
Abdullahi ‘Dulah’ Ramadhan was at his most infuriating for Falcons fans, turning over the ball six times at critical momemts and duly getting punished by Oilers breaks.
When a team has players with the intelligence and speed of mind of Jimmy Enabu (19 points) and Kami Kabange (31 points), you can’t afford to turn over the ball as much as Falcons did. Oilers controlled both boards, rebounding strongly and dominating second chance points.Oilers’ screening has arguably been one of their strongest weapons, together with their rotation of the ball.
All through, Falcons rarely cut the deficit to a single digit.
Fouling out At the close of the third quarter, it was 56-42 in Oilers’ favour. Then early in the fourth, Philip Ameny picked his fourth foul. He later fouled out.
Shortly after, up stepped Daniel ‘Najja’ Juuko with two threes to effectively end any hopes Falcons had of mounting a comeback.
Point Guard Juuko has been Oilers’ silent weapon, running the offense astutely and facilitating teammates.
By the time the game ended 83-73, Steve Omony had fouled out too. Game Four today will be far more important for Falcons than Oilers. Lose and they will be one defeat away from handing Oilers their first title. Win and the series will guarantee a minimum of six games.
METRO Magic beat Hawks 61-58 to be crowned 2013 Zambia Basketball Association (ZBA) south league champions.
Magic's victory over eighth placed Hawks was enough to dethrone second placed UNZA Pacers as champions after extending their lead at the top to five points. Pacers have a game in hand but cannot better Magic's points tally of 34 points going into the last league matches.
LCC Looters are third, but same on points as Pacers on 29, thanks to their 75-56 win over Napsa Hurricanes which was followed by a slender 59-57 win over fourth-placed Green Buffaloes on 27 points.
Hurricanes, who won their second match beating Green Eagles 63-52, are fifth on 25 points while the ZNS club is sixth on 23 points. Other results saw Buffaloes edge Eagles 63-52 as Kabwe Legends were given a 73-59 thumping by Mazabuka Comets, who also beat Eagles 76-73, while Legends lost 80-66 to Hawks.
In the B league, Spartans won promotion to the A league after a 57-47 win over Intrepid Bulls to move to 44 points ahead of promotion chasing Looters who beat Buffaloes 75-68 and Magic 70-60 to remain three points behind but with a game in hand.
Third placed Pacers with 39 points lost their second game to Magic 83-74 as Hurricanes were 61-54 winners over Nkwazi, Chinzam Dragons were thrashed 80-44 with Pacers recording a 90-69 win over Earthrow Bull Dogs.
UGANDA : Title contestants want to cut down on mistakes
Falcons’ Dulah (L) tries to stop Jimmy Enabu in Game One of the final. Photo BY Ismail Kezaala.
Today at YMCA M: Oilers vs. Falcons (8.30pm) W: KCCA vs. UCU (6.30pm) (Both series tied at 1-all)
Falcons and City Oilers may not share history right now but have similar concerns ahead of Game Three of the Castle Lite Basketball Playoffs at YMCA Court in Wandegeya.
Both are failing to close out games. Record champions Falcons bossed Game One and led 71-64 with 1.42 to play only to lose 74-72. They missed 26 of 46 free throws.
Oilers, enjoying a fairytale first season in the top flight, returned the favour, throwing away Game Two after pushing Falcons to the wall. Falcons won 84-76 on the back of Abdullahi Ramadhan’s 30 points.Right in there lies the biggest detriment – inconsistency. Dulah partly cost Falcons with seven points and 10 turnovers in the seven-game series’ opener. However, no one is playing the blame game yet.
“Our concentration on the defensive end must improve,” Falcons’ Stephen Omony said, himself having had an off-day on which he scored only eight points. He was really restricted as coach Mandy Juruni cut out his drive that has accounted for most of his 164 points in nine post-season games thus far.
Omony is far from lethal on both the inside and outside because his wrist remains a bother so shooting the ball hasn’t been an option real.
Oilers feasted on the lack of activity on defence by creating numerous one-on-one situations for the first three quarters only for the six-time champions to switch to zonal defence in the fourth period. “We lost steam at the end which was a big mistake. We can’t do that again,” Juruni, whose team was outscored 15-30 in the loss, noted.
Most of Ramadhan Arou’s team-high 25 points came when he got an open lane on the baseline to underline how poor Falcons have been on the defensive end of the floor.
An ill Kami Kabangu also had a rare bad game, scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds while converting only 4 of 15 field goals.
Like Juruni, Falcons’ coach Gad Eteu will demand that his star players, starting with centre Philip Ameny, 20 points for the series so far, awake for their mini-slumber.
Probably the biggest worry for Eteu is the conditioning of his players going forward following two relatively tougher series physically against UCU Canons and Riham Warriors to get here
Guard Geoff Omondi missed Game Two with a groin problem. Power forward Serge Kabangu and Ameny have their legs heavily strapped.
The women’s series also resumes today with champions KCCA leoprads and rivals UCU Lady Canons also tied at 1-apiece and both still without ‘big men’ Martha Soigi and Peace Proscovia respectively.
Flavia Okecho of KCCA goes for the basket during the final playoff series Game One against UCU Canons at the MTN Arena in Lugogo last Friday. Photo by Ismail Kezaala.
It’s only the second game of what could be a seven-game final series but former champions UCU Lady Canons and Falcons knew they cannot plunge into a 2-0 hole.
The two finalists avoided losing two games in a row by winning their respective Game Twos against KCCA Leopards and City Oilers to leave both series tied at 1-all.
They fashioned their resurrection in contrasting fashion. UCU started like a house on fire in their 63-52 victory over the defending champions.A 16-6 start to the first quarter gave 2011 MVP Purity Odhiambo the impetus to scored a game-high 29 points and 21 rebounds. Maureen Amoding, the 2010 MVP, added 12.
Despite Claire Lamunu’s 17 points and Flavia Oketcho’s 12 and six rebounds, KCCA never really challenged without centre Martha Soigi, away in Singapore with the national netball team.
UCU too were missing Peace Proscovia but coped better with Lorraine Akinyi scoring six points and 10 rebounds. If UCU were in charge all the way, Falcons just sneaked over the finish line.
The record champions, also losing finalists from last year, rode a brilliant fourth period to defeat newcomers Oilers 84-76 and halt their fairytale for at least a day. Falcons, who took the final quarter 30-15, were second best until Peter Elungat, restored to the starting five, sunk a three with 7.07 to play in the fourth. They didn’t falter again.
“It’s persistence that kept us going,” Stephen Omony, eight points, noted. “Our concentration on the defensive end must improve too,” he added. Coach Gad Eteu echoed those Abdullahi Ramadhan, whose own three-pointer preceded Elungat’s, had held them afloat with a game-high 30 points to partly erase the seven-point and 10-turnover show in Game One on Friday.
Dulah, 3 for 4 from beyond the arc, had to be this good as Geoff Omondi sat out due to a groin problem to leave a thin roster bare to the bones.
Serge Kabangu’s 20 points and Philip Ameny’s 10 also kept them in good stead. Both have their legs heavily strapped as the strain of two tough series before the finals start to show.
Though big on quality, Falcons is thin on numbers. This was a roles reversal from Game One when Falcons snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
Oilers had Ramadhan Arou score 25 points and 12 rebounds and James Okello contributing 15. An ill Kami Kabangu added 13 and 12 whereas Jimmy Enabu had 11.
They just didn’t have the final kick, or rather shot to close this out, just like Falcons 48 hours prior.
The Gambia Basketball Association (GBA) on 29 November 2013 held its annual general meeting (AGM) at the Bamboo Hotel & Resort.
The AGM, which brought together GBA executives, delegates from the national basketball teams and stakeholders in basketball, was witnessed by the president, the secretary general and the treasurer, who all delivered their reports, as part of their efforts at promoting and developing basketball in the country.
The AGM also saw the signing of close to US$6,000 between the GBA and the US Embassy in Banjul meant for the GBA to stage a 3 and 3 basketball tournament and also organised a training course for referees.
Speaking at the AGM, Muhammed Musa Njie (Papa Njie), president of the GBA, said it is collective effort that would get them to where they want to, while thanking everyone who worked with them for the success they registered over the year.
They are just restarting, after basketball has been dormant in the country for a couple of years, he said, adding that they need to double up their efforts.
"It was difficult but we were able to stage a national league and played game on various venues," he stated, while thanking their partners and sponsors for their support.
Without collective efforts they would not be able to revive basketball, he reiterated, saying his vision is to see Gambian basketball teams take part in international tournaments.
He also highlighted the need to have an indoor basketball court to be able to play year round as well as host international tournaments.
US Embassy Banjul Charge d'-Affaires Richard Yoneaka said in this statement after signing ceremony that it was a pleasure for him, the US Embassy in Banjul and the Government of the United States to sign the sponsorship.
He noted that it is wonderful for the Peace Corps to be working with the GBA and sharing their experience.
Sports leads to success and gives youth mental discipline, he says, while expressing their gratefulness to the GBA.
Abdul Aziz Titawo Mendy, acting-Executive Secretary of National Sports Council, said he was pleased with the GBA observing their constitutional mandate, while expressing his office's readiness to partner with all associations.They have written to all associations to submit their activity plan for 2014, he disclosed, saying they want plans that can give indications and operations with values.
"We must understand that we do not own associations but they are entrusted to us by people," he noted, saying they want sports to be used as a tool to serve the youth.
"We must reach to communities," he went on, saying they believe the little resources they have can move the sport.
Titawo also expressed their readiness to support basketball to see to it that it gets to its highest in the country.
Momodou Dibba, president of the Gambia National Olympic Committee, said no organisation or business can run well if it is bankrupt, saying he has no doubt the GBA would put the grant given to them by the US Embassy in Banjul into good use.
Dibba revealed that The Gambia will be hosting the Zone II and national sub-regional basketball tournament in 2014, but the GBA executive have to decide a date for hosting it.
They want to see The Gambia take part in international basketball competitions and bring glory to the country, he emphasised, saying: "We will give you the support we have to see that you participate in international tournaments."
