Mandy Lutwama Juruni (UGA) - Tunisia v Uganda, Afrobasket 2015 , Radès (Tunisia), Group Phase, 19 August 2015
KAMPALA (FIBA AfroBasket 2017) - Several months have passed since the conclusion of AfroBasket 2015, an eye-opening experience for the national team players and coaching staff of Uganda.
KAMPALA (FIBA AfroBasket 2017) - Several months have passed since the conclusion of AfroBasket 2015, an eye-opening experience for the national team players and coaching staff of Uganda.
Coach Mandy Lutwama Juruni led the side in Rades, just on the outskirts of Tunis, and discovered just how competitive the Olympic qualifying events are on the African continent.
It was certainly harder for the Silverbacks than it was for most of the other teams. In their group, they had to go up against three teams that ended up reaching the Semi-Finals: hosts Tunisia, eventual champions Nigeria and fourth-place Senegal. It was a steep learning curve for Uganda, a minnow of African basketball.
"It was very, very tough," Mandy Lutwama Juruni admitted to FIBA.com. "We had expectations and when we got there, the level was quite high, especially us playing four games and facing three of the top teams in Africa, so that was tough on us."
Uganda did not start the tournament badly, making things uncomfortable for Tunisia on opening night. It took some time for the host nation to find its comfort zone. Lutwama's side only trailed by six at the end of the first quarter, by 10 at half-time and by 14 at the end of the third quarter. The team made plenty of plays and stayed within striking distance before fading in the fourth quarter and falling, 77-55.
After losing to Nigeria, Uganda had their best opportunity to win when they took on the Central African Republic. A lack of experience hurt them, though. They lost a close one, 60-56.
Despite their three defeats in the Group Phase, Uganda progressed to the knockout stages. In their Round of 16 clash, however, one of the giants of Africa, Senegal, rolled to a 78-49 victory.
At least for Juruni, his Uganda team was able to get the taste of victory in their very last game. They won against Zimbabwe, 72-64. The Ugandans could have claimed at least one more win and maybe two, but they had to settle for that single victory and 15th place out of 16 teams.
"We didn't expect to go and win (the AfroBasket), but we expected to do better," Jurini said.
I think we have seen a lot and learned how to get our national team to a better level. Definitely, us going there has made basketball more popular back home. We got a lot of feedback. People watched the game on TV, so there is a lot that has changed with us having come here. - Juruni
Uganda (UGA) want to build on their AfroBasket 2015 experience
Juruni said: "Playing against those teams, it's motivating the players to go home and say, 'you know what, it's not an easy tournament.' But there are a lot of positives for us as a country."
The Ugandans now know the level they must reach to get wins. Success will not come overnight but in Africa, perhaps, they will be able to close the gap on several nations above them faster than an underdog would be able to in another zone.
"We believe that our league has improved a lot and that's the basis of what we have for qualifying games," Juruni said. "If you have a weak league, you won't have good teams."
We definitely need more coaching clinics in Uganda. We need to organize ourselves as a federation. We need more training. We have few coaches that have gone out of Uganda to get training. I try as much as possible to get coaches to come to Uganda and do clinics for the players. - Juruni
Juruni himself is at the helm of the country's top side, City Oilers. There had already been positive steps made before the AfroBasket. A junior national basketball league was formed in Uganda, so the opportunity is there for youngsters between the ages of 12 and 15 to play the game.
By: FIBA.com
RSS Feed