KPA to use East Africa Basketball Championship podium finish as fuel for title hopes

Former Kenya Basketball champions Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) are keen to reclaim the national league title they lost to Basketball Africa League-bound Nairobi City Thunder last season.

Skipper Gerry Wekesa who captained the side to a third-place finish in last week’s FIBA East Africa Basketball Championship Cup (EABCC) says the experience gained will go a long way in their quest.

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The Cliff Owuor-coached Dockers believe this was an opportunity to create better chemistry for the new-look squad that has picked four league wins in five matches.

“We have a young squad that needed such a competition to gain the much-needed experience of playing at a high level and being part of the EABCC was the perfect setting.

The national league is gaining momentum and we needed to work on our chemistry. Being on the podium and our general execution in the championship was a morale boost in our fight for the league title,” Wekesa told Mozzart Sport.

With only one addition to the squad ahead of the inaugural regional competition, the captain believes the experience has helped them work on cohesion among other areas in anticipation of a good run when league action returns.

“We have picked wins against the Africa Nazarene University (ANU) Wolfpacks, Strathmore Blades, Ulinzi Warriors, and Umoja, losing to bankers NBK.

It is not a bad show, but the season is just getting started, and as competition gets tougher, we need to be ready for every challenge,” Wekesa continued.

Asked who their toughest competition for top place is likely to be, the skipper singled out holders Thunder who won their maiden title last season unbeaten, adding that Umoja presented a tough challenge in the first leg and will be no pushovers in the second round.

As for the loss to NBK, he blamed a lack of game management experience: “We played Warrior for a win, and with little turnaround time before meeting the bankers, we could not get the job done. We are, however, eager for the repeat match.”