Kenya's 3x3 teams ready up for Commonwealth Games

Kenya men’s and women’s 3x3 basketball national teams have qualified for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The Commonwealth Games Federation and International Basketball Federation on Tuesday 9 November announced the two team’s qualifications for the Games set for Birmingham between 28 July to 8 August. 

The 3x3 national men’s team is ranked 57th globally and fourth in the continent with the women’s team ranked 29th and second in Africa in the latest rankings updated on 10 November. 

“The sport is gaining traction in the country and we could not get better news to boost our efforts to grow the version of the discipline. We have continued training in anticipation of competitions like the African Championship that have since been postponed to next year,"

"We have 30 players in the provisional squad for each gender but the selection is still open. The big number helps us ensure we have a sufficient pool to choose from when the time comes. Recently, we have witnessed more players taking interest in the sport and some of the tournaments held have had to close entries due to huge turnouts,” says Tony Ochieng, the men’s team head coach who doubles as the Strathmore Blades head coach. 

The tactician believes the fast growth the version of basketball is experiencing will propel the teams to hold their own against more established teams as 3x3 makes its debut on the Commonwealth Games’ stage.

“Within three years the teams have moved up the ladder and are now ranked in the top ten and this is both for the senior and under-23 teams. This is a sport that has proved to be vibrant in our universities and we have the talent to parade in Birmingham. We have an active university circuit so not having a national league will not be a hindrance to the development of the game,” he added. 

Ochieng further reveals that they are looking at having the 3x3 national teams exclusive of the 5x5 version of the sport and not drawing their players from the Morans and Lionesses as has been the norm in previous competitions. 

In 2019, the team participated at the All-African Games and came in fourth. Later on, they took part in the African Cup Games in Kampala and finished in 6th place.