Team cohesion was the secret behind Kenya Ports Authority’s success at the FIBA Africa Women Basketball League Zone Five Qualifiers, coach Anthony Ojukwu has revealed.
The long-serving porters' tactician attributed the win to hard work and the kind of scouting the technical bench did throughout the eight-day tournament in Kigali, Rwanda.
KPA thumped Rwanda Energy Group (REG) 87-53 to claim the regional crown. The two teams will represent the zone in the December 11-19 finals in Cairo, Egypt.
Madina Okot contributed 22 points and had a game-high 27 rebounds. Victoria Reynolds scored 23, Morgan Taylor had 19 points and captain Natalie Akinyi chipped in 13 points and dished out 17 assists. “It is teamwork.
The girls did well on defence even when our offence was struggling to convert,” he noted.
“We studied our opponents well, watched their videos, and also analysed their team statistics. We also did a post-mortem after each and every game we played.”
Ojukwu dedicated the win, his 11th accolade in the region, to his late mother Benter Oloo, who passed on after a long illness just after the team arrived in Kigali for the championship. She will be buried next week. “I talked to her a day before we left for Rwanda and her words were ‘You go and play and bring back the trophy.”
“It was very hard on me all through especially when the announcer notified the crowd of my mother’s demise. They gave a minute standing ovation and that’s when it sunk in.”
Ojukwu said after her mum’s burial in Kisumu county, the team will start off their training for the championship final tour slated for December 11-19 in Cairo, Egypt. “After my mum is laid to rest, I will travel to Mombasa to start preparations for the finals tour. We will hit the ground running and I will if I have to make some additions to the squad,” he said.
KPA, who lost to Alexandria Sporting Club of Egypt in last year’s finals played in Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania, finished the tournament with an unbeaten record. Equity Bank Hawks were third.
