USSA 2009 Day 2

Some pictures from the USSAs TUKS vs. CUT game:

What a day of upsets and drama…Before I mention the basketball, it seems that USSA and SABC Slamdunk have reached an agreement and the cameras have started rolling again on day 2. The fans came in drips and drabs but they had good entertainment throughout with some key battles.

Ok straight to the dramatic games that produced exciting results. The hosts, The University of Pretoria (TUKS), lost both their games with the men’s team losing to last second free throws from Cape University of Technology (CPUT) guard Vincent Ntunja, while the ladies went down to Vaal University of Technology (VUT) in a match that was won in the first half. Tuks men had an 11 point lead and blew it in the last 2 minutes to lose the game on turnovers, bad calls and good shooting from CPUT guards. VUT ladies made their statement early against the defending champions by going on a run early on and in the end Tuks couldn’t catch up. The match was littered with plenty of mistakes and turnovers from the host but credit must be given to VUT who played great defense throughout. They hurried Tuks into mistakes and their PG controlled the game with some great decisions.The biggest upset of the day must go to the Wits Ladies who defeated the favourites, The University of Johannesburg, UJ in a match that had plenty of lead changes. Wits fought with heart and great team spirit and amazing leadership from their national player, Phumla Sathula (Wits 15). They were in UJ’s face from the first whistle and despite a disappointing third quarter, they picked up their game in the fourth to win by 3 points and the victory felt so much sweeter because it was a team effort. UJ didn’t step up to the plate when they had to and some of their players will have to do some introspection if they are to snatch the title from the University of Pretoria. The less said about the officiating throughout the tournament the better.

VUT men were given a run for their money by University of Western Cape (UWC) but in the end, when VUT figured that they were a big threat inside and they started getting better scoring opportunities. UWC will rattle a few feathers in this tournament so teams better be warned because they show great poise for a very young team. University of Kwazulu Natal (UKZN) look like a shadow of themselves and the energy they showed in last year’s tournament has all but disappeared; they were humbled by UJ in their earlier game. The UJ boys look like they mean business and they are strong favourites to win it, they play Tuks at 11 on day 3. In the last game of the day, VUT took Durban University of Technology (DUT) to the cleaners and in the end it was a 15+ points victory.

The ladies games have gone according to strength and so far it looks like it will be a Gauteng semi final showdown with VUT, Tuks, UJ and Wits making up the numbers. The Cinderella team this year will be the Wits ladies who seem to have found a purpose and belief to trouble other teams.

Please check out the latest schedule here:

USSA 2009 latest fixture

Article by Victor Shakineza, pictures courtesy of Julia Harms

Tags: Basketball, Cape Town University of Technology, Central University of technology, Durban University of Technology, DUT, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth College, Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University, Tshwane University of Technology, TUT, UJ, University of Johannesburg, University of Kwazulu Natal, University of Pretoria, University of the Western Cape, Universty of the Witwatersrand, UP, USSA, UWC, Vaal University of Technology, VUT