Bravehearts Ladies, Angels eye Queen of the Courts crown: It’s South vs Central in King of the Courts semis
The K5 million G.Y Imports & Exports, Dr Print King & Queen of the Courts national basketball tournament took shape at the weekend with Lilongwe based ladies sides Bravehearts Ladies and Angels cruising to the competition’s finals after defeating Nozobal Select and Lady Bricks respectively.
Central Zone Basketball League (Cezobal) current league leaders Bravehearts Ladies eased through to the finals of the ladies tournament after crashing Northern Zone Basketball League (Nozobal) Select by 104 baskets to 27 in a one-sided affair at African Bible College (ABC) indoor court on Saturday.
But the real battle was at Civo court on Sunday where reigning national ladies’ champions Angels from Lilongwe and Lady Bricks from Blantyre had to be separated by a 10-minute overtime following a 34-34 tie in normal time.
The Lilongwe side led 34-33 with just seconds remaining on the clock but Lady Bricks tied it to 34-34 seven seconds from time after forcing free throws. The Blantyre ladies, however, failed to bury the game from the second free throw after missing the target.
Came overtime, Lady Bricks took a two-basket lead but Angels pulled some quick baskets to win the tie by 50-44 baskets.
Turning to the men’s show, Cezobal League B current leaders Bravehearts reached the semi-finals after beating Nozobal champions Nkhulande 74-33 at the ABC indoor court.
Also reaching the semi-finals on Saturday were the indomitable Bricks from Blantyre, who defeated Cezobal champions Cougars 55-42 in a nerve wrecking affair at ABC.
Playing Sunday at Civo Court, Zomba based heavyweights Magang’a booked a semi-final tie against Bravehearts after beating Mimbulu 64-46. Trojans completed the semi-final list with a 79-52 victory over their Cezobal colleagues Bionets. The Trojans will face Bricks in the semi-finals at ABC on Saturday.
Commenting on the weekend games Chief Executive Officer for Dr Print Daud Hussein said the sponsors were highly impressed with the standards displayed by the teams.
“We have been greatly impressed by both the playing standards and fighting spirit amongst the players. Every team wanted to win and the games were very tough,” said Hussein, who watched the games alongside G.Y Imports & Exports Managing Director Griffin Kalua.
