Do-or-die in KBF as KPA battle with Ulinzi Stars
By Lynette Matheka, December 6, 2019
Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) men’s league playoff semi-finals enter homestretch this weekend with holders Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) set to do battle with former champions Ulinzi Warriors for one of the two final slots.
In the other semi-final, league debutants Embakasi Youth (EMYBA) continue their fairly tale of a season against Nairobi City Thunder. The two semis are tied at 1-1 with the finalist set to be known at the end of the weekend.
After falling short in booking a final berth last season, as they fell 3-2 to Warriors in the semi- finals, Thunder are hoping that the phrase lightning does not strike the same place twice holds water and they won’t miss their spot this season.
On their part, EMYBA, are ready to give the big shots a run for their money. The Brian Busu coached side blamed their Game Two loss on complacency, promising to come back stronger and fight for that coveted slot.
Meanwhile, the highly anticipated clash between last year’s finalists KPA and Warriors has all the ingredients of a thriller even as the two sides are bullish about getting the better of the other.
“Morale is high and we want to win the next two matches and book a place in the final where we have every intention of defending our title.
We struggled with our defence in Game One. We also allowed Ulinzi’s fast breakers to get to the ball and put the match out of our reach before we could adjust.
However, we made amends in Game Two and we will use the same strategy in the weekend matches,” said KPA assistant captain Martin Kitong’o.