Basketball: KIU look the part
Jun 30, 2015
Nasser Sserunjogi has desperately searched for the right formula to the men’s national basketball league crown.
By Charles Mutebi
Nasser Sserunjogi has desperately searched for the right formula to the men’s national basketball league crown.
Until this season, however, it seemed the KIU basketball boss was not close to finding success. As recently as last season, the KIU Titans endured a typically disappointing end to the campaign.
They huffed and puffed in their best-of-three quarterfinal playoff series against TigerHead Power but when it was over, Power were 2-0 winners and the Titans were left waiting for their first ever postseason series win.
Perhaps the most damning aspect is no one really expected a different outcome than a humbled KIU, heading home after the first round of the playoffs.
But 2015 looks different. KIU look different.
On paper and on the Airtel National Basketball League (ANBL) table, KIU look tick. With eleven games played, Hamza Nyambogo’s team have won 10 and sit pretty atop the standings. As if that’s not enough, the Titans have played the best basketball in the first round of the regular season, which is a bit odd for a team with four new signings in their starting line-up.
“I’m not really surprised that we have gelled quickly because the players we signed are very senior players,” explained Sserunjogi. “And some of them have played together before for example Norman (Blick) and Henry (Malinga), which has made it easy.
“But the other major reason is the coach. His philosophy has helped the team gel quickly. He doesn’t really dwell a lot on plays. He just lets the guys scrimmage most of the time and emphasises the fundamentals of passing and movement. That has been very instrumental”.
Sserunjogi said at the beginning of this campaign that the objective is to reach the Finals. Asked if his team’s brilliance has persuaded him to aim higher, Sserunjogi insisted, “reaching the Finals would be a great achievement for us. We’ve never been to the finals before so getting there would be a big step” So far, the Titans have shown they are built to last this time.
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