‘City Bulls’ now on the brink of league semis

Dar es Salaam. Vijana put up a spirited fight to down Tanzania Prisons 66-59 in the Dar es Salaam Regional Basketball League (RBA) play-offs match at the Spiders court yesterday.

City bulls, as Vijana are fondly referred to, are now on the verge of the semi-finals of the regional league as they need only two points in their next two games to sail through.

Basketball enthusiasts at the court were on their toes throughout the match as, despite the defeat, Prisons played their hearts out in the nail-biting but exciting showdown.

After a tight battle in the first nine minutes, Prisons slightly lost steam, allowing their opponents to take a 17-11 first quarter lead.

In the second quarter, Vijana never relaxed, commanding the proceedings with accurate passes to the delight of the fans. It came as no surprise when they won the quarter 14-4.

Looking unperturbed, Prisons came out a more aggressive in the third, pinning Vijana at their own half to take a 21-16 lead.

The fourth quarter saw the well-drilled and fast-moving Prisons coming up with a bigger force and improved tactics to the delight of their supporters.

They managed to add 23 points more compared to 19 garnered by Vijana in the quarter.

However, their victory in the final quarter was not enough to put them close to the next stage of the league.

The well-attended game was very tight, especially in the third and final quarters. Whenever a Vijana player could receive a ball, within no second, a Prison player could be behind his back.

Players continued tight marking each other but during the course of the game, they got tired and started playing freely.

It proved to be a see saw game in the third quarter with both sides outdoing opposite guards to add points.

Vijana skipper Cornel Joseph scored 18 points and teammates Stephen Mshana and Antony Jeikanga added 14 and 13, respectively.

“I am very happy to help my team beat Prisons and I must be thankful to my teammates. It was a tough match,” said Joseph shortly after the match.

Emanuel Mwendo scored 15 points for Prisons while teammates Jacob Linus and Paulo Bwile had with 12 and 11respectively.

Tanzania Prisons coach, Martin Zawadi refused to blame his players for the defeat, saying they put up a ‘brave’ fight.

“We lost to a better team, but we had our chances which we fluffed. Had my forward been precise up front, we could have won the match,” he said

In another gripping match, DD Lioness went down 62-50 to JKT stars at the same venue.