Savio, JKT Optimistic As Zone V Tournament Draws Closer

Frank Kusiga

Hopes are soaring for Tanzanians teams as the Fiba-Africa Zone V tournament looms. The regional tournament gets underway at the National Indoor Stadium on Saturday with 17 teams already confirmed for the event. Tanzania will field four sides. Speaking yesterday, Savio head coach Evarist Mapunda voiced optimism that his team will put up a stellar performance in the tournament. "We have a home ground advantage this time around, so I hope that Savio have a bigger chance of winning the title this year," said Mapunda whose team has been outstanding in the domestic league in recent years. "We have intensified our training and the boys are responding quite well. I hope that by the time the tournament starts, we will be in the best shape to challenge the regional silverware." He added: "Savio has a blend of seasoned and young players, so I hope that this will help us push for the title. We have both experience and versatility. We have a reason to be confident of landing the title this year." Kenyan, Ugandan and Burundian clubs have always been dominant forces in the Zone V championship. However, Mapunda warned the Tanzanian teams not to underrate their opponents just because they will be enjoying a boisterous support from home fans. "The teams we will be facing have exhibited high quality in the past tournaments, so playing on home soil alone won't help us if we don't match their strengths," he warned. JKT Stars coach Frank Kusiga (180-G-82) also expressed his optimism of performing well in this edition, but admitted that the tournament will be anyone's to win. "We have in the competition mode right now. We have prepared well and hopefully we will have a glorious participation," said Frank Kusiga, who had a splendid time with both the club and national team. According to the Tanzania Basketball Federation (TBF), preparations are complete. Foreign teams start arriving today with Uganda's Canons, Lady Canons, and Oilers expected to were expected to land first. Nanaseh Zablon, who is one of the TBF officials, said they expect all the teams to report a day before the tournament takes off.
Courtesy of: thecitizen.co.tz