KPA handed losing start in continental FIBA Champions Cup

Reigning Kenya Women’s Premier League champions Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) were on Friday afternoon handed a losing start in their participation at the continental FIBA Africa Women’s Champions Cup currently ongoing in Maputo, Mozambique as they were defeated 76-50 by Angola’s Interclube.

In the Group A match, which was KPA’s opening game, the Dockers struggled to find its footing as they trailed in all the four quarters in the encounter despite Nigerian Okoro Ifunaya, who was brought on board to bring energy and experience to the squad, topping the scoring charts with 20 points.

“We started well in the first quarter and second quarter where there was a lot of intensity and concentration. We started to crack towards the end of the first quarter but at least we gave a good show. We are going to give our all in the next game and our aim is to win one or two games for us to get to the quarter finals,” head coach Antony Oloo said after the loss.

At the end of Q1, KPA trailed by only four points as Interclube led 14-10. The deficit would grow to eleven points by the half way interval as Interclub stretched to a 32-21 lead.

In the second half, the Angolans maintained their upper hand as they stayed 61-36 by the end of the third quarter, a healthy lead they kept to see out the 76-50 victory for Inter Clube who have clinched the championship a record five times, a stretch arising from constant qualifications from 2010 to 2019.

Following their defeat, KPA shift their focus to the remaining Group A matches where they are joined by Costa do Sol (Mozambique), CNSS (DR Congo), Energie BBC (Benin).

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KPA have never tasted a podium finish in the Champions Cup, with the best finish for the Kenyans coming in 2017, when the Dockers finished fifth.

On the other side of the draw, Group B consists of reigning champions Ferroviario de Maputo (Mozambique), APR (Rwanda), AS Ville de Dakar (Senegal), Alexandria Sporting Club (Egypt) and Overdose Up Station (Cameroon).

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