Savio, Lioness target Africa Zone V titles

Dar es Salaam. Newly crowned RBA League champions Savio leave for Kampala, Uganda tomorrow for this year’s FIBA Africa Zone V Club Championship, which starts on Sunday.

Savio are among three teams that will represent the country in the week-long championship that will see 15 clubs from 11 countries battle for titles in the men’s and women’s categories.

DB Lioness, winners of the women’s title in the recently ended RBA League, also head to Kampala tomorrow, while ABC are expected to leave for the neighbouring country on Saturday.

Savio head coach Evarist Mapunda has expressed optimism that his team will put up a stellar performance in the tournament.

“We have intensified our training and the boys are responding quite well to my instructions. I hope that by the time the tournament starts, we will be in the best shape to fight for the regional silverware,” he said yesterday.

“My team is a blend of seasoned and young players, so I hope that this will help us push for the title. We boast both experience and versatility.

“We know that our fans expect nothing short of the regional title from us. We, therefore, train rigorously ahead of the Kampala championship,” Mapunda added.

Savio players who will make the trip include Romanus Anania, Georger Tarimo, Brian Mramba, Amin Mkosa, Junior Kabeya, Mohamed Yusuph, Ally Mnyamani and Amin Mtambo, according to Mapunda.

Those making up the DB Lioness squad include Amina Ahmed, Rehema Silombi, Olyne Londo, Zakia Kondo, Maria Mabera and Justine Bablia.

ABC coach Leonard Kwale also said he was optimistic they will perform impressively in the Kampala tournament, but admitted that the regional event will be anyone’s to win.

“We are well prepared for the championship and hopefully we will make a mark in Uganda,” he said.

Countries expected to field teams in the competition are Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Egypt and hosts Uganda.

Defending champions Uganda will battle it out to retain the men’s trophy in the tournament that will come to a close on October 7.

Kenya’s Kenya Ports Authority will be out to defend the women’s title.

The competition for both women and men returns to Uganda after five years. The country last hosted the 2012 edition.

“We are happy that FIBA through the African body has once again given Uganda this chance to host this big event that brings together the top teams in Zone 5,” Ambrose Tashobya, the Federation of Uganda Basketball Association (FUBA) president, was quoted as saying from Kampala earlier this week.

Uganda’s City Oilers have vowed to play their hearts out and retain the trophy in-front of their fans.

“Playing at home brings a lot of pressure, but we are training hard because our goal is to retain the trophy,” he insisted.