The Uganda U21 3×3 men and women’s teams finished as runners up in stop 3 of the FIBA 3×3 Youth Nations League, Africa North, currently taking place in Monastir, Tunisia. The performance in the pool stage was good but unfortunately, there was icing on the cake for both teams.

Men’s Performance

Having finished as runners up in stop 2, the men came into this stop more determined. There was also a switch in personnel as Brighton Galiwango replaced Victor Makmot.

In their opening game, Uganda took on Algeria, a side that had defeated them in the final the previous day. The boys knew that a win in this game carried a lot of weight on who went to the finals and they approached it so much seriousness.

The boys did their work on the defensive end and made it very difficult for the Algerians. In the end, they secured a 16-11 and this put them in pole position to top their pool. Galiwango was a disruptor on the defensive end but he also exploded for 9 points while Edrine Ekau scored 5.

In the second game, Uganda put the Egyptians on clamps. They limited them to just 5 points and Uganda won the game 11-5. With this, the boys had gone back to the finals.

In the final, they took on Tunisia and lost 12-7. However, the start to their game was horrific. They trailed 8-0 and in over 5 minutes, they had not score a point. By the time they woke up, it was already too late.

Women

The ladies started their journey on a high, winning stop 1. However, stop was rough and they finished in fourth place. This was a chance for redemption and they took it as such.

Uganda defeated Tunisia 10-9 in their opening game. This was a very tight game from start to the end and just before the final whistle, the hosts had a chance to level but the ball hit the rim and out it went. This was the start that the girls needed and it gave them a lot of confidence going into the second game.

In their final group game, Uganda played Benin and despite a slow start. They were able to pull away and win the game comfortably 14-6.

The final was very tough for the ladies. Their scoring efficiency was poor and Egypt took advantage of that. They knocked down a couple of shots while Uganda struggled to strike from distance. The Egyptians were the eventual winners, 20-11 being the final score.

Current standings

With Egypt (women) having won back-to-backs stops, they are currently top of the conference. Uganda is in Second place having won stop 1, finished second in stop 3 and fourth in stop 2.

The men are also in second place having finished second in stops 2 and 3 and fourth in stop 1. Algeria top the men’s standings having won stops 1 and 2 and finished third in stop 3.

Road to the Olympics

Stop One was very good and the ladies need to win as many stops as they can. If they can win 2 of the remaining 3 stops, they will have gained a significant advantage over their opponents. At the moment, the Egyptians have the edge and the Ugandan ladies need to step up.

Secondly, the players need to score as many as they can, there have been few games in which the Ugandan team has scored 20+ points. They need to exert dominance over their opponents.

Stop 4

After the first 3 stops, the player will take a break and return to action for stop 4 on Friday 7th August. The ladies are in pool B with Kenya and Tunisia. The men are in pool A with Algeria and Benin.