NBL: Wounded Oilers Seek Solace Against Unbeaten Warriors

Friday, May 10
*Nkumba Lady Marines Vs UCU Lady Canons, 6:30 PM
*Warriors Vs City Oilers, 8:30 PM

City Oilers will be seeking for resuscitation against indomitable Warriors when the National Basketball League continues on Friday at Indoor Arena in Lugogo.

The Oilers come into the game on the back of a 82-90 loss two overtime loss against UCU in a Sunday thriller and will be targeting to return to winning ways.

“We weren’t aggressive enough, especially defensively,” Oilers captain Jimmy Enabu told SportsNation, refoecting on loss to UCU. “We didn’t make stops especially when we needed to.”

“We need to play well, take care of the ball better than we’ve been doing.”

The loss was Oilers’ first after the six time champions had beaten up on KIU Titans, Kampala University and KCCA Men.

The side will welcome back Daniel ‘Najja’ Juuko from a long lay off that had seen him miss the opening games. His return may not be the headline but he is expected to offer some support off the bench.

Oilers will mainly rely on their usual starts – Jimmy Enabu, James Okello, Landry Ndikumana among others – for a better result.

Oilers won both games 83-77 and 58-51 against Warriors in last season’s regular season. However, the 2017 regular era was split with Oilers winning 72-62 in the first round before Warriors retaliated with a 57-54 win in the second round.

Warriors Posing With Size

It promises to be a close thriller, but with Warriors putting trust in their big men, the Kyambogo side goes into the matchup with less to fear.

Jonathan Kambala, Imran Samad and Michael Buzangu are expected to eat more minutes on court than any other Warriors player and their battles against Oilers stars may shape the direction where this game may head.

The trio looked vital against Betway Power but Mark Opiyo Okidi picked the player of the match gong on the night. Opiyo, together with Chris Omanye will have to dictate plays from the back and their intelligence will be key if Ronnie Mutebi’s charges are to keep their unbeaten run intact.

“We want to use tonight’s game to evaluate and gauge how far we are so far in regards to our championship preparations,” Coach Mutebi told SportsNation.

“City Oil is way ahead of us in terms of experience and confidence but we are hungry for victory. I believe the deciding factor tonight is going to be the defense.
“All the games we have played so far our defense has been outstanding so am hoping we maintain the same I intensity.”

This will be the third big game for Warriors in a space of just ten days – They beat KIU Titans on May 1 before pilling more misery on Power on May 3 and it is not yet known how much those games took out of Warriors armoury.

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