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 cap brilliant year with Summer Slam success

It was a successful 2016 Summer Slam Charity Tournament

Bokamoso South capped a brilliant year by beating KTA All-Stars 52-48 in an entertaining 2016 Sprite Summer Slam Charity Tournament final on Sunday at Lehakoe Club.

Bokamoso went through the tournament unbeaten to continue their outstanding 2016/17 campaign so far.

The Summer Slam title is their second trophy of the season after winning the Sprite Memorial Independence Tournament in October. Bokamoso also sit proudly atop the National Basketball League (NBL) where they have lost just once in ten games.

It means, in total, Bokamoso have won 18 games and suffered only one defeat in all competitions this season.

Bokamoso South in 2016/17

	P	W	L
NBL	10	9	1
Memorial Independence	4	4	0
Summer Slam	5	5	0
Total	19	18	1

Bokamoso began their run to the Summer Slam title by beating South Africa’s Phoenix Int 50-45 on Saturday. They then defeated another visiting side in Bloem Alumni 49-41 before a 20-0 walkover over local rivals Bashana Baheso in Saturday’s final game.

On Sunday was finals day and Bokamoso convincingly beat Lichocha Shooting Rifles 65-49 in the semis to advance to the final.

The final was expected to be a much tighter affair and it proved to be so. Ultimately, though, it was Bokamoso who once again got the better of KTA All-Stars, 52-48. Bokamoso’s Nako Mafube was named the MVP of the tournament.

A new force in Lesotho basketball... Bokamoso South

With another trophy in the cabinet, Bokamoso South also appear to be building a rivalry with KTA All-Stars.

Last season a previously unheralded Bokamoso side surprisingly reached the NBL finals before losing 3-0 to a more experienced KTA outfit. However, the youthful Bokamoso club has grown in confidence from that experience to become this season’s team to beat.

They relegated KTA to second place at the Memorial Independence Tournament and overcame Lesotho’s reigning kings once again this weekend.

In the women’s tournament, South Africa’s Phoenix Flames were crowned champions with Shooting Stars finishing as runners-up.

All in all, it was a successful tournament and a fruitful weekend for Lesotho’s teams.

Sprite Summer Slam Charity Tournament 2016

Results

Day 1

Men’s

Bokamoso South 50-45 Phoenix Int

KTA All-Stars 47-45 Mbabane Raptors

Bashana Baheso 19-30 Bloem Alumni

Goodfellas 29-55 Lichocha Shooting Rifles

Bokamoso South 49-41 Bloem Alumni

KTA All-Stars 43-38 Goodfellas

Phoenix Int 45-34 Bashana Baheso

Mbabane Raptors 57-48 Goodfellas

Bloem Alumni 18-26 Phoenix Int

Bokamoso South 20-0 Bashana Baheso

KTA All-Stars 61-39 Lichocha Shooting Rifles

Women’s

Bokamoso 04-48 Phoenix Flames

Bokamoso 14-46 Shooting Stars

Shooting Stars 25-32 Phoenix Flames

Lichocha 54-41 Mbabane Raptors

Day 2

Bokamoso 25-33 Shooting Stars

Phoenix Flames 70-6 Bokamoso

Shooting Stars 18-45 Phoenix Flames

Semi-finals:

Lichocha Shooting Rifles 49-65 Bokamoso South

KTA All-Stars 58-51 Phoenix

Final:

Bokamoso South 52-48 KTA All-Stars

Final Classifications

Men

1. Bokamoso South - Champions

2. KTA All-Stars - Runners-up

Ladies

1. Phoenix Flames - Champions

2. Shooting Stars - Runners-up

Most Valuable Players

1. Nako Mafube - Bokamoso South

2. Ellen - Phoenix Flames

Prizes

1. 1st Prize - Trophy and Medals

2. 2nd Prize - Medals

3. MVP - Trophy

Airtime Prizes

1. 1st Prize - M4000

2. 2nd Prize - M2000

3. MVP - M500

National Basketball League standings

		P	Pts.	W	L	PF	PA	PD	Last 10	Streak
1	Bokamoso South	10	19	9	1	647	401	246	9-1	W1
2	Bashana Baheso	10	18	8	2	544	373	171	8-2	W3
3	Lichocha	10	18	8	2	817	438	379	8-2	L1
4	NUL Rovers	10	16	6	4	456	421	35	6-4	W1
5	Leseli Tigers	10	16	6	4	516	492	24	6-4	W1
6	KTA All-Stars	10	16	6	4	544	473	71	6-4	L1
7	Khubestate	10	13	4	6	335	454	-119	4-6	L1
8	Bokamoso North	10	13	3	7	309	426	-117	3-7	W1
9	Lerotholi	10	13	3	7	394	570	-176	3-7	L3
10	LCE	10	12	2	8	329	565	-236	2-8	L1
11	Limkokwing	10	10	0	10	281	559	-278	0-10	L10