Ankunda wants to awaken the sleeping giant in Power

Twice, Betway Power have parted ways with Bernice Ankunda. Twice, they have run to him to come to their rescue.

After winning the 2008 National Basketball League title, Ankunda, following disagreement with management, was asked to excuse himself.

He obliged. Power would then lose to Warriors in the 2009 final. Power realised they needed their coach back. Ankunda returned.

His second spell was even better as Power did a two-peat, winning the 2010 and 2011 titles. Management kept him until 2015 when he was demoted without notice and eventually replaced by Robert Mugambe.

Ankunda left quietly. Now, Power have lost their opening five games and Ankunda has been hired to save the team’s dignity. They may feel he is the best suited gun-for-hire.

Bottom side
“My task is to get the team off the bottom of the table,” says Ankunda.  “I have not had enough time with the team but we have tried to address a few issues.”
Playoffs are a pipe dream for the five-time league champions. In the immediate term, relegation is the main task starting with a game a clash with Namuwongo Blazers at KIU today.

His first session was on Thursday. That would normally be their final one of the week but an extra one was squeezed in for Friday.
“He is a smart coach and has a great plan to help us win games,” team manager Philip Kyomuhendo says in Ankunda’s praise. “You know there are not many coaches in Uganda,” he adds.

Back against the wall
Ankunda prides himself in being able to work well under immense pressure and his new role will have exactly that. “I like being on the wall,” he states. “It pushes me to put in work and that’s what I’m here to do.”

He could start by getting Saidi Amisi to dominate the paint again and push Brian Waters, who Ankunda coached at KCCA Panthers, to get his message through.
“These guys can play if clearly assigned roles to execute and that’s what I will emphasize,” Ankunda explains. 

The leadership of Isaac Afidra, Stephen Wundi’s shooting and Amisi’s rebounding are some of the aspects Ankunda intends to ride on.
Salim Kisilu is averaging 17 points and 10 rebounds in 34 minutes and Ankunda will hope for consistency from the young forward.

Not here for long
Ankunda has no intentions of coaching at the high level for long. His plan is to save Power’s season and take the back seat.
He has fronted the idea of a Power academy that would give him a chance to groom players for the team but management is yet to buy into his ideas.
“I want something more technical like working with kids to help them grow and improve their game.”

“People need to start playing basketball early and the team wouldn’t have to go into recruiting new players every season,” he opined. Depending on how the rest of the games go, three wins might be enough to get Power into the playoffs to stretch Ankunda’s stay but he says the goal is to get over with the season and step aside.

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