Power forward Afidra not bothered by lengthy lull

KAMPALA.

Yesterday, Isaac Afidra hosted the bulk of his Betway Power teammates at his home in the city suburb of Ntinda. It wasn’t party to welcome 2017 but rather a ‘strategy meeting’.
“We are here to strategize,” Afidra told Daily Monitor. The five-time champions face City Oilers in a seven-game National Basketball League final series starting this Friday.
Power face unpalatable history of having never beaten Oilers in a series. In fact, they were swept 4-0 in the 2014 finals, a year after meekly losing 3-1 in the semis to their tormentors-in-chief.
Whatever strategy Power coach Arnold Lando and his team came up with during that meeting and others to come this week, awakening from a lengthy lull must be high on the agenda.

They last played a competitive game on November 17, beating KIU Titans 75-72 in the decisive game five of their semifinal series.

Their final opponents’ last game was on December 14, a dominant 88-69 win over Cameroon’s Nzui-Manto to seal ninth place at the Fiba Africa Champions’ Cup in Egypt.
“We have been practicing, that’s all I can I say,” forward Afidra, most experienced Power player, said. “To get a championship, you have to practice. In sport, you reap what you sow.”
With the 2016 finals delayed due to Oilers maiden participation in last month’s Fiba Africa Champions’ Cup, Power faced a Select Side in a series last month with the aim of keeping players focused.

However, Afidra, whose side will seek a first title since 2011, saw nothing more than “fun games” for the side.
“All we wanted was to reach the finals and now we are here,” he added.
A final appearance is the perfect silver lining for Power who never looked like getting this far in a below par 2016. They flew under the radar before eliminating a fancied KIU.
Earlier, Power had beaten Oilers 72-60 as the three-time defending champions stuttered to three defeats prior to winning the Fiba Africa Zone V Club Championship in Tanzania.

Top seeds Oilers, favourites heading into the final, may have to deal with fatigue as they seek an unprecedented fourth straight league title.

It’s been a long year that started in January at the KIU and UCU Invitational tournaments before embarking on the 22-game regular season, Zone V and Champions’ Cup.

PEPSI NBL PLAYOFF FINALS

Friday at Lugogo
7:30pm tip-off time
City OiIers vs Power
Game One of best-of-seven