JKL Lady Dolphins edge UCU in game 5 to qualify for 6th straight finals

JKL Lady Dolphins defeated the UCU Lady Canons 59-52 in game 5 of the semi-finals to advance to yet another NBL Finals.

October 16, 2025

4–6 minutes

Jkl Lady Dolphins, National Basketball League, NBL 25, UCU Lady Canons

The JKL Lady Dolphins advanced to the sixth straight NBL finals after edging the UCU Lady Canons 59-52 in game 5 to win the series 3-2.

At the final whistle, the Lady Dolphins players let out shouts of excitement, and this was an expression of what this meant to them.

A lot of hugs were passed around, singing, dancing and pure joy.

On the other side, there was a bit of sorrow, though not so much from the UCU players but rather the ‘hate watchers’ who were in plenty.

This was a very high stakes game and a sizeable number of fans came to witness the action for themselves.

Straight from the jump, we knew that both teams would leave everything on the floor. This was seen on many occasions in the game.

With less than 4 minutes left, Shadia Nassanga hit a midrange shot and she let out a shout of joy. The Lady Dolphins had created a 7-point lead and they knew that they had one foot in the finals. That raw happiness was an example of what this meant for them.

They went ahead to increase their lead to 9-points and saw out the victory.

In the first quarter, JKL had the lead, 15-11. The intention for JKL was clear, to take the ball to the basket and score in the paint.

On the other hand, the UCU Lady Canons were taking the ball in and kicking it out for the shots. They attempted 13 3-point shots and scored just 3 in the quarter.

In the second quarter, UCU decided to take the ball to the basket more. They scored 5 of their 6 field goals in the paint.

On the other end, they made it difficult for the Lady Dolphins in their own paint and this paid off heavily.

JKL scored just one field goal in the quarter and it was from the 3-point line.

At the halftime break, the UCU Lady Canons led the game 25-23 but both teams looked evenly matched in multiple aspects.

JKL adjusted on offense and all they did was drive, attract the help defender and kick/ pass it out.

Zainah did this twice, driving and passing it to Akello in the short corner. Brenda Ekone did a similar thing to set up the Nakiyingi triple and Hope Akello did this excellently, feeding Shadia Nassanga who made no mistake from the baseline.

This produced results over and over but for the Lady Canons, the 3-point shots were still a problem. They had numerous open attempts but the connection just wasn’t as they hoped it would be. They scored just 2 in that quarter and ahead of the fourth, JKL led 43-41.

Hope Akello and Zainah Lokwameri huge each other after the game 📸 Toni Kamau

JKL made a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter and with just over 3 minutes left, the Lady Canons had to be efficient in order to turn the game around but that did not happen.

They missed some crucial free throws and failed to hit the target on their final attempts from the 3-point line.

Coaches Remarks

JKL Lady Dolphins Coach Henry Malinga shared some remarks after the game.

“They are excited. They are happy. The ladies showed grit, character but most importantly, they showed us who they are.” Malinga on the mood in the camp and what the team showed.

“All the games we’ve played (in the series), we have been punished on the inside and behind the arc we’ve been doing a good job. (I told them) take care of the inside and everything else will fall in place.” Coach Malinga on his message to the girls before the game.

Shadia Nassanga came up huge in the second half and the coach had some words about her.

“The Shadia you saw today is the Shadia that we expected even before game one. We kept finding her at the right spot and at the right time. That is her spot (baseline short corner) and everybody on the team knows it.”

Finally, made some comments on the JT Lady Jaguars and what to expect in the finals.

“JT (Lady Jaguars) is new in the system but they have kept on improving. They have a good cast of players who are experienced and have been to the finals and won the championship.”

“We are not going to take them lightly and the fact that they have gotten to the finals, they are worthy opponents.”

“I expect a tough finals and ancipate a very competitive series.”

UCU Lady Canons Head Coach Nicholas Natuhereza made some remarks after the game.

“Both teams did well in limiting the activity in the paint and it was contested (in there).”

“I wish that we could have hit a couple of mire shots because the style they played meant that we had to take more shots from the three. Unfortunately we did not score enough”

“We want to finish as high as you can. We have enough time to recover and prepare for the game. it is a game that we need to take seriously.”