KPA sign American duo for BAL battle
Kenya Ports Authority new signing, George Williams of USA arrives for a training session at the KPA Makande hall in Mombasa on November 15, 2022.
What you need to know:
- KPA booked a place in the second round after they finished second behind hosts COSPN in the first round that was played from October 18 to 23 in Madagascar
- The dockers, who are in residential training camp in Mombasa, are scheduled to leave for Johannesburg, South Africa Sunday morning for the November 22 to 27 event
- The top three teams at the completion of the event will proceed to final round that is scheduled for next year in Kigali, Rwanda
National men's basketball league champions Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) have acquired the services of two Americans George Williams and Christopher Brady ahead of next week’s Basketball Africa League (BAL) second round in South Africa.
Brady who is from New York and Williams from Houston have both previously played for Al Bashayer Club from Oman.
KPA booked a place in the second round after they finished second behind hosts COSPN in the first round that was played from October 18 to 23 in Madagascar.
The dockers, who are in residential training camp in Mombasa, are scheduled to leave for Johannesburg, South Africa Sunday morning for the November 22 to 27 event.
This is not the first time the dockers are acquiring the services of foreign players. In the first round, they had Wade Lowman from the University of Montevallo and Qatar’s Tony Townsend.
Speaking Tuesday evening during their friendly match against Mombasa-based club Congo Nets at KPA Makande hall in Mombasa, team manager Christopher Ogut said the team is in good shape and are keen to proceed to the final round set for next year in Rwanda.
“We have had the best preparations and we hope to make our sponsors proud. The management has been supportive. Unlike in 2019 when we finished third, we are determined to go all the way this time round and qualify for the final round,” said Ogut.
“We have 15 players in camp but we will drop two prior to our departure. The event gives teams room to beef up their squads with two foreigners and that’s why we have these two and I believe they are good additions,” he added.
The top three teams at the completion of the event will proceed to final round that is scheduled for next year in Kigali, Rwanda.
Kenya Ports Authority new signing, Christopher Brady of USA arrives for a training session at the KPA Makande hall in Mombasa on November 15, 2022.
KPA have been drawn in Pool “A” alongside Tigers of South Africa, Urunani of Burundi and Under-21 NBA academy Africa.
The East Africans will start their campaign against Urunani on October 22, tackle hosts Tigers the next day before they wrap up their Pool "A" matches against NBA academy the following day.
Pool “B” has Ferroviard Da Bera of Mozambique, Matero Magic of Zambia, COSPN of Madagascar and City Oiliers of Uganda.
KPA coach Sammy Kiki echoed Ogut’s sentiments saying they want to compete in the final stage.
“We are giving our best in training and so far everything is working out well. The players are determined and I’m happy that we have had ample training sessions. We owe the management positives result as they have given us overwhelming support,” said Kiki who guided KPA to recapture the league title from Ulinzi Warriors last season.
This is the second edition of the BAL competition that started in 2019.
