UJ 3×3 basketball team narrowly misses out
AUCKLAND PARK – UJ’s diverse team takes on the best in Africa.
University of Johannesburg (UJ) 3×3 basketball team narrowly missed out on playoffs in the Afro Varsity 3×3 Basketball Challenge.
The team travelled to Nairobi, Kenya to participate in the tournament for the first time. Although they didn’t qualify for the playoffs, they were proud of making it to the fourth edition of the tournament and only missed out on the next round after narrow defeats to Makerere University, 14–12, and the University of Zambia, 14–13.
Captain of the UJ basketball team Trystan Speck said, “Although it is the first time that our guys played the 3×3 challenge with teams that are regular challengers in the tournament, they showed that they can compete and are capable of winning the next time they participate in such a tournament. We lost two matches that were clear wins for us because we did not use our clear chances to score and allowed the opponents to score against us in the last few minutes of the games.”
The four-member team, made up of three playing players and one reserve, won just one out of four matches which was not enough to see them through to the group stages. “The guys played very well in the competition.
We have learned a lot from the 3×3 challenge. It requires skill, shooting accuracy, energy, and continued focus as well as a good time and game management. If you don’t follow these simple but important aspects, you get punished.”
The two-day contest featured African university teams from Senegal, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, and Zambia, which comprised players from many other African countries.
UJ and Stellenbosch University were the only two South African university teams competing in the tournament. The UJ team featured five players and three managers from South Africa, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Nigeria.
