KNBL: Mufutu explains Ulinzi's loss to KPA

Ulinzi Warriors head coach Bernard Mufutu has admitted that inconsistency was the key reason they lost their game against giants Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) in the Kenya National Basketball League. The soldiers were defeated 89-81 by the Dockers at the Makande Gymnasium, Mombasa on Sunday. “We were not consistent. At some point we were down 16 points to 14, we played well, caught up with them and lost concentration again. We also lost a lot of free throws on our end and that was the game changer because KPA were knocking down their free throws,” Mufutu said. However the soft-spoken tactician has promised to work on their weakness in the upcoming fixture with one game to go in the regular season for the soldiers. “We should be able to do a better job in terms of playing consistently and on the line. Generally the aggression of the boys was good but being aggressive doesn’t mean you foul. We took KPA to the line many times and they were knocking all the shots,”Mufutu added. Ulinzi started off badly losing the first quarter 19-32 before regaining themselves in the second quarter of the game as they won 29-21 with KPA taking halftime lead of 53-48. After the break, Ulinzi came back strong with a different game plan winning the third quarter 20-15 as the two teams ended the third quarter with 68 Ups. The Dockers used home advantage with a backup cheering squad to revamp themselves and win fourth quarter 21-13 as the game ended 89-81 at the final buzzer. Bramwel Muchina was a shining star for KPA as he scored team high of 20 points with the trio Lenox Wanje, Tobias Odhiambo and Gerry Wekesa scored 46 points combined. On their part red-hot Elisha Odhiambo scored game high of 23 points for the Soldiers with trio Simon Rapudo, Alvis Akoyi and Brans Nzioka had 32 points combined for Ulinzi.

Before Sunday's game against Ulinzi, KPA had lost 77-96 to defending champions Nairobi City Thunder at the same venue on Saturday. Ulinzi Warriors are second on the table with 35 points after playing 21 games, winning 14 and losing seven with one game to go against newbies in the league NBK Phoenix in the regular league. On their part KPA have 34 points after playing 19 matches, winning 15 and losing four with three games to go. The remaining three games are against Umoja, ANU Wolfpacks and Strathmore Blades.
Courtesy of: citizen.digital