KTA are still NBL title contenders – Ratšolo Molupe

"KTA All-Stars can still challenge for the NBL title despite slow start"...

Lesotho basketball giants KTA All-Stars didn’t get their 2018/19 National Basketball League (NBL) campaign off to the best start when they suffered a crushing 54-35 defeat to Lichocha Shooting Rifles two weeks ago.

The loss immediately put KTA in catch-up mode in the NBL Northern Conference behind Lichocha and surprise package T98.

This past weekend KTA and the rest of the NBL was not in action because of a Lesotho Basketball Association (LBA) referees course.

The time away gave KTA an opportunity to regroup and identify mistakes and club captain Ratšolo Molupe still believes his side remain genuine championship contenders despite being outplayed by Lichocha in their season opener.

Molupe said the main problem against Lichocha was a bad start which put KTA in a hole.

“We started the first quarter badly and we had a 16-4 deficit which was the game changer,” Molupe said.  

“We played well through the second and third quarter but we started horribly in the first quarter both offensively and defensively. After the first quarter we managed to get a grip of the game but Lichocha’s lead was too deep.”

Falling behind also didn’t suit the methodical style of the experienced KTA squad against the fast pace of the more youthful Lichocha.

“When you are down big the team needs to really play close to perfection to make a comeback and unfortunately we would keep on making mistakes here and there,” Molupe added.

“Time was also not on our side and that really killed our chances.”

KTA, of course, have been the dominant side in Lesotho basketball over the past decade winning four of the last nine NBL titles.

The landscape has changed of late, however, and young sides such as Bokamoso South and Lichocha have risen to steal KTA’s shine. Then there is defending NBL champions Lerotholi Polytechnic who came out of nowhere last season to make a fairy-tale run to the title – their first NBL crown in more than ten years.

All of it makes KTA’s position atop basketball’s food chain more vulnerable than it has ever been. Already KTA haven’t won the title since 2016 and they haven’t even made the NBL Finals for the past two years.

NBL title winners since 2010:

2010 – Rovers 2011 – KTA All-Stars 2012 – Rovers 2013 – KTA All-Stars 2014 – KTA All-Stars 2015 – Bashana Baheso (BBH) 2016 – KTA All-Stars 2017 – Bokamoso South 2018 – Lerotholi Polytechnic

KTA’s battle tested squad also showed signs of aging last season and the opening week loss to Lichocha did little to dispel questions whether KTA can cope with the faster pace of their new rivals – Lichocha, Bokamoso and Lerotholi.

KTA also have a more challenging road to the playoffs this season.

This season the NBL has introduced a two conference system with only two teams from each conference advancing to the playoffs. The form of league new boys T98, the early leaders of the Northern Conference after two wins from two games, makes KTA’s road to the postseason appear even more challenging.

NBL A-Division
Southern Conference	Northern Conference
Lerotholi Polytechnic NUL Rovers Tigers Bokamoso South Mafeteng Roma BBH	Lichocha Shooting Rifles KTA All-Stars Botho University Limkokwing Bokamoso North T98 Khubestate

Molupe, however, insisted KTA still have what it takes to challenge for the NBL title. KTA’s next game is on Friday against T98 at Lehakoe.

“We have a deeper team than last year and we believe we’re still a championship team,” Molupe said.

“We faced tough opponents in our first game and it showed us the areas we need to work on early. We’ll be fine as long as we make the right adjustments.”

Weekend NBL Fixtures:

Friday at Lehakoe:

KTA All-Stars v T98 (18:00)

Saturday at Leshoboro Sports Complex:

09:00 KTA All-Stars v Bokamoso North (A-Division)

10:30 KTA All-Stars v Bokamoso North (Ladies Division)

12:00 Tigers v Mafeteng (A-Division)

13:30 Limkokwing University v Roma (Ladies Division)

15:00 Mafeteng v KTA All-Stars (Ladies Division)

16:30 Roma v BBH (A-Division)

Sunday at LCE:

10:30 Bokamoso North v Tigers (Ladies Division)

12:00 Tigers v Bokamoso South (A-Division)

13:30 Lichocha Shooting Rifles v Mafeteng (Ladies Division)

15:00 Lichocha Shooting Rifles v T98 (A-Division)

Defending NBL champions Lerotholi Polytechnic off to bright start

The 2018/19 National Basketball League season got underway this past weekend
and the opening round of action did not disappoint...

Defending National Basketball League (NBL) champions Lerotholi Polytechnic got their title defence off to a bright start with a double dose of wins on the opening weekend of the 2018/19 NBL season.

Fokothi started things off with a nail-baiting 40-39 win over NUL Rovers in the season opening game on Friday night at Lehakoe, a game which was closer than expected.

Lerotholi then faced league new boys Tigers on Saturday but this time things were not as tight as the champions demolished their opponents 83-43.

The wins put Lerotholi on top of the A-Division’s Southern Conference after the first weekend of action as the only team to play twice and win twice.

NUL Rovers also played twice and they recovered from their Friday night disappointment against Lerotholi to wallop Roma 52-30 on Saturday at NUL.

The most high-profile fixture of the weekend was a Northern Conference clash on Sunday between Lichocha Shooting Rifles – runners up in the last two NBL Finals – and 2016 champions KTA All-Stars.

The game wasn’t close, however, as Lichocha outclassed KTA 54-35, the first major result in a season promises to be a fascinating one.

This year the fast-growing NBL has its most-ever registered teams in the league – 14.

The consequence is that the NBL’s top-flight A-Division has been divided into two streams, the North and South conferences.

Each conference has seven teams and at the end of the season the top two sides from each stream will advance to the four-team championship playoffs to determine the 2018/19 NBL champion.

NBL A-Division
Southern Conference	Northern Conference
Lerotholi Polytechnic NUL Rovers Tigers Bokamoso South Mafeteng Roma BBH	Lichocha Shooting Rifles KTA All-Stars Botho University Limkokwing Bokamoso North T98 Khubestate

Meanwhile, in the Ladies League there were weekend wins for Bokamoso North and Lerotholi while NUL Rovers and Lichocha claimed wins by forfeit after their opponents (Roma and KTA respectively) failed to show up for their games.

National Basketball League Weekend Results:

Friday at Lehakoe:

Lerotholi Polytechnic 40-39 NUL Rovers

Saturday at NUL:

A-Division:

Khubestate 40-63 T98

Limkokwing University 27-52 Bokamoso North

NUL Rovers 52-30 Roma

BBH 0-20 Bokamoso South (BBH lost by forfeit)

Ladies Division:

Limkokwing 11-42 Bokamoso North

NUL Rovers 20-0 Roma (Roma lost by forfeit)

Sunday at Lehakoe:

A-Division:

Lichocha Shooting Rifles 54-35 KTA All-Stars

Tigers 43-83 Lerotholi Polytechnic

Ladies Division:

Lichocha Shooting Rifles 20-0 KTA All-Stars (KTA lost by forfeit)

Tigers 37-38 Lerotholi Polytechnic

Bokamoso South crowned 2016/17 National Basketball League champions

Lesotho's new basketball champions... Bokamoso South

Bokamoso South have been crowned champions of the 2016/17 National Basketball League (NBL) season after a 83-76 overtime win over Lichocha Shooting Rifles in Game 4 of the NBL finals on Sunday.

Bokamoso’s dramatic win at a lively Lehakoe Club gave them an unassailable 3-1 lead in the best-of-five finals series.

It is the first national title for the club since they were founded in 2012 and it was sealed in thrilling fashion as Sunday’s game went beyond the normal regulation time.

It was the sides’ fourth meeting in two weeks after Bokamoso won 83-77 and 76-64 in Games 1 and 2 last weekend before Lichocha won Game 3 68-60 on Friday, and the tension was clear from onset.

The teams traded leads throughout the tight game until Bokamoso finally sealed a memorable 83-76 victory after nearly two hours of action.

With the win, Bokamoso completed a remarkable treble and confirmed themselves as the new force of Lesotho basketball.

Bokamoso had already won the Sprite Memorial Independence Tournament last October and the Sprite Summer Slam Charity Tournament in December. Bokamoso, who also finished first in the regular season league phase to claim the top seed for the NBL playoffs, won 32 of their 35 games in all competitions this season.

They will represent Lesotho at the annual Swaziland Invitational Basketball Tournament in June.

Action packed National Basketball League weekend awaits

NBL is hotting up...
Another big weekend for Bokang Sehlabaka and his Lichocha team.

The National Basketball League (NBL) will continue its march towards the end of the league season with a jam-packed slate of games this weekend. The action will kick-off this evening with LCS facing Khubestate at the Lehakoe Club at 18:00.

Khubestate have to win to keep their faint playoff hopes alive. Khubestate are in eighth place in the 11-team NBL. They have 18 points and are four points behind champions KTA All-Stars who occupy the fourth and final playoff spot.

Khubestate will be looking to build on last Sunday’s 50-45 win over Limkokwing University and LCE offer the perfect opportunity to do so.

LCE are rock bottom of the NBL standings with just two wins from 13 games this season. LCE have also lost their last four games, the second longest losing streak in the league.

On Saturday the action will move to the National University of Lesotho courts. The games will begin at 09:00 with a potentially exciting ladies league clash between log leaders Bokamoso North and hosts NUL Rovers.

In the only other ladies league encounter of the day, Bashana Baheso face Leseli Tigers in a match that could go a long way in deciding which of the two teams qualify for the playoffs. Currently Leseli occupy fourth place while BBH are in sixth place but only one point behind.

In the men’s league Bokamoso North will face hosts NUL Rovers and LCS will take on Lerotholi Polytechnic. However the game of the day is the meeting of second placed BBH and third placed Lichocha Shooting Rifles.

The busiest day of a busy weekend will be on Sunday at the Lesotho College of Education. Five critical games will be played on Sunday including a rematch of last year’s NBL finals between champions KTA All-Stars and log leaders Bokamoso South.

All out pressure from KTA All-Stars...

Bokamoso South are the story of the season thanks to their stunning run of form. Bokamoso have won their seven games in a row, four more than the next best streak, and have won nine of their last 10 games.

Bokamoso have already won the Sprite Summer Slam Charity Tournament and Memorial Independence Tournament in a fabulous campaign. They are looking to win an incredible treble this season and they can make another statement by beating the champions.

KTA, for their part, have had an inconsistent season and lie in fourth place. However, the champions have won their last three games and a match-up against Bokamoso South is a chance to prove they remain the team to beat.

Sunday’s feast of games will also see Bokamoso North face Lerotholi Polytechnic, Leseli Tigers play Khubestate, Limkokwing University take on Bokamoso South before the weekend action concludes with LCE playing host to Lichocha.

NBL weekend schedule:

Friday, 10 February

(Lehakoe)

A-League

1800: LCE v Khubestate

Saturday, 11 February

(NUL)

Ladies

09:00: Bokamoso North v NUL Rovers

13:00: Bashana Baheso v Leseli Tigers

A-League

10:30: Bokamoso North v NUL Rovers

12:00: LCE v Lerotholi Polytechnic

15:00: Bashana Baheso v Lichocha Shooting Rifles

Sunday, 12 February

(LCE)

Ladies

15:00: LCE v Lichocha Shooting Rifles

A-League

09:00: Bokamoso South v KTA All-Stars

10:30: Bokamoso North v Lerotholi Polytechnic

12:00: Leseli Tigers v Khubestate

13:00: Limkokwing University v Bokamoso South

16:30: LCE v Lichocha Shooting Rifles

BBH and Lichocha win as rain wreaks havoc on NBL schedule

Lichocha Ladies made it four wins in a row against BBH

Rain wreaked havoc on this weekend’s National Basketball League (NBL) schedule. No games were played on Saturday in Roma because of heavy rain which robbed spectators of a rematch of last year’s NBL finals between reigning champions KTA All-Stars and current league leaders Bokamoso South.

The rain finally relented on Sunday and allowed league action to take place at Lehakoe Club.

With Bokamoso South unable to take the court this weekend, it was a chance for Bashana Baheso (BBH) and Lichocha Shooting Rifles to put some sort of pressure on the NBL A-League leaders and both managed to do so.

BBH convincingly beat Limkokwing University 61-31 while Lichocha demolished Lerotholi 74-26.

BBH, with 27 points, remain second in the race for the top seed but they at least closed the gap to Bokamoso to four points. Lichocha, meanwhile, are third with 23 points but they have played two games less than BBH and three fewer than Bokamoso.

In Sunday’s final men’s league game, Khubestate kept their feint playoff hopes alive with a 50-45 win over struggling Limkokwing. Khubestate are now four points behind KTA in the fourth and final playoff spot but they have played a game more than the champions.

In the ladies league, reigning champions Lichocha Shooting Rifles moved level on 23 points with leaders Bokamoso North thanks to a 63-34 mauling of BBH. BBH, however, had at least tasted the sweetness of victory with a 52-8 win over Limkokwing University earlier in the day.

NBL Results:

Sunday

NBL-A:

Khubestate 50-45 Limkokwing University

Bashana Baheso 61-31 Limkokwing University

Lichocha Shooting Rifles 74-26 Lerotholi Polytechnic

Ladies:

Lichocha Shooting Rifles 63-34 Bashana Baheso

Bashana Baheso 52-8 Limkokwing University

Friday

NBL-A: NUL Rovers 79-31 Lerotholi Polytechnic

NBL Standings:

NBL – A

		P	Points	W	L	PF	PA	Diff	Last 10	Streak
1	Bokamoso South	16	31	15	1	1027	643	9-1	384	W7
2	Bashana Baheso	15	27	12	3	855	547	8-2	308	W3
3	Lichocha	13	23	10	3	1004	534	7-3	470	W1
4	KTA All-Stars	13	22	9	4	699	602	7-3	97	W3
5	NUL Rovers	13	21	8	5	638	549	5-5	89	W2
6	Leseli Tigers	14	20	7	7	671	678	5-5	-7	W1
7	Bokamoso North	15	19	4	11	481	707	3-7	-226	L2
8	Khubestate	14	18	5	9	499	687	4-6	-188	W1
9	Lerotholi	15	18	3	12	564	922	2-8	-358	L8
10	Limkokwing	15	18	3	12	470	749	3-7	-279	L2
11	LCE	13	15	2	11	426	716	2-8	-290	L4

NBL – L

		P	Points	W	L	PF	PA	Diff	Last 10	Streak
1	Bokamoso North	13	23	11	2	426	154	9-1	272	W3
2	Lichocha	12	23	11	1	522	304	9-1	218	W4
3	NUL Rovers	10	18	8	2	352	197	8-2	155	W2
4	Leseli Tigers	13	17	5	8	425	382	3-7	43	L2
5	KTA All-Stars	10	16	6	4	368	305	6-4	63	L1
6	BBH	13	16	6	7	358	298	6-4	60	L1
7	Bokamoso North	13	14	3	9	229	456	3-7	-227	L1
8	LCE	11	9	0	11	119	345	0-10	-226	L10
9	Limkokwing	11	9	1	10	69	427	1-9	-358	L9