Back-to-back losses for Warriors as KPA’s streak continues

Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) men’s league defending champions Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) remain unstoppable as the regular league enters homestretch ahead of the playoffs.

In one of their toughest match-ups since getting back to action for the second leg, the dockers made easy work of former champions Ulinzi Warriors, winning 64-52 in a match they led from form first whistle to the last.

Bullish Ojukwu confident of KPA's title defense

Coach Sammy Kiki’s charges came to the fixture off a scare by Kenyatta University Pirates in an abandoned match on Saturday. The varsity side had held the star-studded KPA before rains stopped the encounter with both teams tied on 45 points, with a minute on the clock in the third quarter.

From the get go in the clash against the military side, Kiki’s charges sent their statement of intent racing to a 10-3 lead within the first few minutes of the match as the Bernard Mufutu-coached seemed lost on their own turf.

Warriors were trailing 16-9 at the conclusion of the first quarter and their attempt for a comeback in the second period made little difference as they only scored 15 while KPA made 16 to maintain their advantage at the break.

“I am happy with the results. We played well and were able to contain Ulinzi defensively. They had their runs but we managed to stop their strong points. Our penetration was good but our shots were not dropping. Had we scored all the missed chances we would have put the match to rest earlier. We knew they cannot match us in one-on-one situations and we took advantage of that,” coach Kiki offered.

The second half was no different as KPA led 17-14, 15-14 in the two periods to keep a charged Warriors at bay and continue their winning streak in the second leg. So far, the dockers have only dropped points against Africa Nazarene University (ANU) in the first leg.

“The scare from Pirates played a huge role in how we handled this match. I must admit that the players concentrated on the Sunday match and were complacent against the varsity side and that almost cost us crucial points. It was, however, a good wake up call to the squad not to make assumptions that any opponent is easy to handle in coming matches,” Kiki added.