Highlights: Day one of the Jr. NBA/WNBA Tournament
The Victoria Mxenge Indoor Sports Centre, in Umlazi, just outside of Durban, on Saturday welcomed 24 teams for two days of all-out basketball action in the Jr. NBA/WNBA Tournament.
Boys’ and girls’ KZN schools and clubs, featuring teams from Durban and Pietermaritzburg, took to the court in a battle for the titles.
Day one featured over 150 players in action in 31 matches, with the sides intent on racking up the right results to qualify for the big playoff places on Sunday.
Girls Competition: Girls
One of the most notable performances in the girls’ competition came from Cwebezela Primary School, in Pool B, with resounding victories over both the Durban Girls’ College (DGC) B team and Sukuma Primary School. They blanked DGC in their opener, winning 14-0. Then, in a more open contest, they decisively down Sukuma 31-4.
It was a tough day for DGC, whose A and B teams came out on the wrong end of a number of games. After losing to Cwebezela, DGC B suffered a number of setbacks, including a big 2-34 defeat to Liv Village, which was followed by a 0-31 loss to Molweni.
DGC A gave a good account of themselves in a narrow 6-12 defeat against The Clan and were competitive against the formidable Shakahead Basketball Development team, but still went down 4-17. In the third match, they were overrun by Sekelani Primary School, who powered their way to a 26-0 win, to eliminate DGC A from the competition.
In Pool A of the girls’ competition, Shakahead Basketball Development showcased their skills. After beating DGC A, they held off Imisebe 18-14 in a tight contested game. Sekelani Primary School challenged Shakahead significantly, but the development side sneaked a hard-fought 14-13 victory. They completed their pool assignments on a winning note by recording a 15-4 win over The Clan.
Boys’ Competition
In Pool A of the boys’ competition, Home Turf emerged as a dominant force and a fan-favourite after defeating Sukuma Primary School 31-4 in their opener. Liv Village proved to be no match for Home Turf, either, as Home Turf rolled to a 28-3 victory. Cwebezela Primary School provided more a challenge, but Home Turf, once again, registered a convincing win, triumphing 29-12.
Cwebezela, after going down to Home Turf, recorded back-to-back wins, defeating Sukuma Primary School 25-8. and Sekelani Primary School 18-5.
In Pool B, Kearsney College overwhelmed Molweni, scoring a decisive 37-3 victory. They further asserted their dominance by blasting Shakahead Basketball Development 41-2.
Emthethweni Primary School, on the other hand, achieved the biggest win of the day in the boys’ competition, defeating The Clan 44-3.
Game Day 1 Full Results
Boys
Home Turf Hoops 31-4 Sukuma Primary School
Wentworth Raptors 4-14 The Clan
Sekelani Primary School 5-18 Cwebezela Primary School
Sukuma Primary School 14-12 LIV Village
Molweni 3-37 Kearsney College
Shakahead Basketball Development 7-12 Umbilo Kings
Home Turf Hoops 28-3 LIV Village
Molweni 6-8 Shakahead Basketball Development
Emthethweni Primary School 44-3 The Clan
Wentworth Raptors 26-22 Imisebe
Imisebe 13-33 The Clan
Sekelani Primary School 20-16 LIV Village
Home Turf Hoops 29-12 Cwebezela Primary School
Sukuma Primary School 8-25 Cwebezela Primary School
Kearsney College 41-2 Shakahead Basketball Development
Molweni 2-23 Umbilo Kings
Girls
Durban Girls’ College B 0-14 Cwebezela Primary School
Imisebe 20-0 Emthethweni Primary School
Shakahead Basketball Development 17-4 Durban Girls’ College A
Cwebezela Primary School 31-4 Sukuma Primary School
Sekelani Primary School 20-2 Imisebe
Durban Girls’ College A 0-26 Sekelani Primary School
Durban Girls’ College A 6-12 The Clan
Shakahead Basketball Development 18-14 Imisebe
The Clan 10-20 Sekelani Primary School
Durban Girls’ College B 2-34 LIV Village
Sekelani Primary School 13-14 Shakahead Basketball Development
Molweni 31-0 Durban Girls’ College B
Sukuma Primary School 2-23 LIV Village
Molweni 8-14 LIV Village
Shakahead Basketball Development 15-4 The Clan
