Storming Start For Botswana 3x3 Girls Side
Kaone Maje | Monday January 14, 2019 12:19
For the second time, Botswana hosted the continental Young Lions Club competition that saw the presence of Burundi, Comoros, Seychelles, Mauritius, Eswatini, Lesotho, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Two teams; boys and girls represented each country.
The local side walloped their first opponents, Zambia 9-2 in a game, which was a walk in the park. The Botswana side, known as Sour Babies, took full height advantage to put their opponents to the sword.
Botswana walloped Lesotho 16-3 points, one of the highest scores in the competition, in their second match, as they booked a place in the semi-finals.
Blocking and rebounding became the order of the day, with Botswana the dominant side. Worth noting is that the hosting team mastered throughout the competition scoring outside the arc, which meant two points each time the ball went down the net. The defence was intact and the girls impressively closed down their opponents and recovered possession well.
It was only the Zambian team that gave Sour Babies a fright, even though their attempts were either off target or thwarted.
“We stand a good chance of winning the competition. All we need to do is to prepare for powerful teams such as Zimbabwe, which is our only threat.
Remember that we coaches do not coach on the field but we spectate and allow the players to put into display their skills and what we coaches teach them. The basketball IQ is vital and should be displayed at all times to ensure that players play to their level best,” coach, Olebile Kepaletswe said ahead of yesterday’s games.
The boys’ side started off slowly, losing 10-8 to a powerful Zimbabwe side, but bounced back in the second game as they trampled over Lesotho 9-2.
Botswana dominated the game with more points doubled by hitting the goal net outside the arc.
This time, the boys connected with each other very well. As anticipated, the local boys defeated their Swaziland opponents 11-7. Apart from local teams, Seychelles and Zimbabwean boys’ teams were dominant throughout the competition and hammered their opponents mercilessly.
The Zimbabwean girls trounced their counterparts and qualified for the next round after their first two games. The tournament attracted good crowds.