12th December, 2011
Miguel Anthonio, Vice President of Angolan Basketball Federation, and Leader of the delegation of Angolan teams to the just concluded 17th FIBA-Africa Club Championship in Lagos speaks on the organisation of the tourney and the performance of his teams and other teams in the championship.
Q: Now that the 17th FIBA-Africa Club Championship has ended, how would you describe the organisation and the hosting as a whole?
I think the Local Organising Committee, LOC, and Nigeria as a nation have done a great job to host the whole of African basketball even at short notice.
Initially, eight teams were expected to participate in this edition but eventually only five teams featured due to the withdrawal of three teams.Will you say the low turnout of teams affected the glamour of the championship?
Personally, I think if those teams from Algeria, DR Congo and Cameroon had featured in the tourney, it would have given the championship more glamour. Despite their absence, we still saw a good display of skills and entertaining matches through out the duration of the tourney.
How would you rate the performance of all the teams, especially the Nigerian sides, First Deepwater and First Bank?
All the teams gave a good account of themselves; even the Kenyan Ports Authority that lost all their games really showed some improvements in their play. It is an indication that the sport is thriving in Africa. In regards to Nigerian teams, I think Nigeria still remains a force to reckon with in Africa and at the world’s stage. The Deepwater team really showed a lot of promises in spite of the fact that they are playing at the African stage for the second time. However, First Bank still relied on old players that have been playing for them in the past 3 or 4 years.They need to let their young players to climb up the ladder to the senior team.
….And your teams?
We are very impressed by the performance our teams have recorded here in Nigeria.We actually underestimated the two teams because they are trying to introduce new players into the limelight coupled with the fact that Maculosso Sporting Club are making their debut on the continental scene.