In the 2024 season, the KCCA Leopards were thought of as the team that would rival the JKL Lady Dolphins for the title.

In the first round, they were very solid and lost 2 games, one of them against the Lady Dolphins in a very close encounter.

However, in the second round, the team became stale.

They lost to all the top 4 teams and were swept by the JT Lady Jaguars in the quarter-finals.

Fast forward to the 2025 season, many did not take KCCA Leopards seriously in terms of competing for the championship.

Many had JKL and the JT Lady Jaguars as the top favorites with KCCA being in the mix but not as much.

However, the Leopards surprised many, as they defeated both the JT Lady and the JKL Lady Dolphins to finish as the number one team after the first round.

Need I say, despite it being a 1-point victory against JT,  it was a convincing one. Despite coming into the game as the underdogs, the Leopards looked like the most likely team to win from the tip off.

The game against JKL does not paint a very good picture of the status of both teams but the fact that KCCA won makes them a team to be feared.

In that game, JKL did not have the services of Becky Longom, who has been out for most of the season and her substitute Shadia Nassanga was also not available.

To make matters worse, their best 1v1 defender, Ritah Imanishimwe also missed the game.

With all the people that JKL missed, it’s safe to say that KCCA defeated a much weakened side but it doesn’t matter.

As the saying goes, “a win is a win”

The 2 teams meet in the opening game of the second round and it is promising to be fireworks.

One of the big questions about this game is, does a win make the KCCA Leopards title favorites?

After the first round, the KCCA Leopards became more relevant and are definitely in the conversation for the title more than they were before the season started.

However, given their horrific second round in the 2024 season, so many people are still skeptical about them.

If they lose this game, it won’t make news but if they can complete the double over the JKL Lady Dolphins, their name will be stamped among the title challenges.

The other important thing to note is, a win increases their chances of finishing as the number one seed.

This ultimately makes their road to the finals a much easier one.

If they finish as the number one seed, they will likely face either Angels, Nabisunsa or UPDF in the quarter-finals and either UCU, Miracle or Magic in the semifinals.

Avoiding the other title challengers until the final is a good thing for them and as a team, all this should be at the back of their minds.

A win against the JKL Lady Dolphins in the opening game of the second round will go a long way in improving their confidence about challenging for the title.

KCCA Leopards and JKL Lady Dolphins meet on Friday 30th at Lugogo Indoor Arena.

Uwineza Ninette and Evelyne Nakiyingi will be a very good battle to watch out for.

However, Coach Roger Serunyigo has made a couple of changes to his side when facing top opposition and Sherinah Mwenyango may be given a huge role defensively (to take care of Evelyne).

Tracy Namugosa scored 29 points against the Lady Dolphins last time around, can she better that performance?

The impact of Nassanga will also be something to watch out for.

How can KCCA stop the transition threat that Tamasha Nsubuga presents?

All these will be key battle grounds and one shouldn’t miss such a thriller.