Morans coach Liz Mills has hailed Tylor Ongwae after he nailed a buzzer-beating basket in their 74-73 win against Angola which sent Kenya to the Afrobasket for the first time in 28 years.
Mills, whose guidance was also a first on the continent, noted that she had all the confidence in Ongwae and is excited that he, and the team, delivered against a basketball powerhouse.
“I told the boys to spread the floor and put the ball in his (Ongwae’s) hands. We had faith he was going to hit that shot,” said Mills in a post-match press conference.
Assistant coach Sadat Gaya added: “We prepared well against Angola by studying videos of how they play.”
“When the game started, Angola came out blazing but we managed to weather the storm.” “(Joel) Awich was unstoppable once he settled and Ongwae’s defence on Angola captain Carlos Morais was brilliant.”
He said it was a good team effort as Kenya limited Angola to just one fast break. Centre Tom Wamukota hailed Ongwae.
“If you look at his track record, he has done it multiple times before,” observed Wamukota.
“And once you see him pace the ball and say everybody else get out of the way, you respect that he would do something remarkable.”
Awich’s mother Lynette, who played at the 1986 women’s AfroBasket, said of his son: “He settled down in the second half and gave a good account of himself. I am happy with his and the entire teams’ performance. They competed to the very end. Taking down Angola was no easy feat.”
