Silverbacks Games
*Feb 24: Angola
*Feb 25: Ivory Coast
Feb 26: Guinea
Friday, February 24
*Cameroon Vs DR Congo
*Niger Vs Ivory Coast
*South Sudan Vs Senegal
*Cape Verde Vs Guinea
*Tunisia Vs Egypt
*Uganda Vs Angola – 9pm
Uganda National Men’s Basketball team, the Silverbacks, finally left the country late Thursday night to honour the last round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers in Luanda, Angola.
The team left without having a single training session, and without coach Mande Juruni.
Tonny Drilleba is injured and has not made the trip while UCU Canons’ Rogers Dauna has been included on a 9-man squad of locally based players.
Second Assistant coach Andrew Tendo will be on the touchline.
FUBA had earlier hinted on lack of funds and had their major focus on the Gazelles (Women) at the concluded Zone Five Afrobasket Qualifiers.
Poor or no preparations at all has been the case for the Silverbacks in recent past.
In the last window last year in August, the team lost all their three games in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to slip bottom of Group E.
The results all but ended Uganda’s faint hopes of qualifying to the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Japan, Indonesia and Philippines, with a window to spare.
Uganda then lost to Angola before falling to then hosts Ivory Coast and Guinea.
With the Qualification slot to the World Cup out of reach, the team has gone to just complete games and avoid possible bans.
It’s strong to note that the teams that finish in the top two places of Groups E and F, followed by the best third-place team from both groups, earn the right to represent Africa in this year’s World Cup
Group E leaders Ivory Coast (7-0) are currently the only African team that has qualified for the 32-nation FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Table – Group E
Cote d’Ivoire: 7-0
Angola: 5-2
Cape Verde: 4-3
Nigeria: 3-4
Guinea: 1-6
Uganda: 1-6
Silverbacks – Jimmy Enabu, Fayed Baale, Titus Lual, James Okello, Ceaser Kizito, Stanley Mugerwa, Innocent Ochera, Peter Obleng, Rogers Dauna.
