The finals weekend of Varsity Basketball 2019 commenced with four sizzling encounters, and the battle for the top two hotting up at Wits Sports Hall.
TUKS KEEPING THE FAVOURITES ‘HONEST’ IN 2019
Thurday’s action got underway with the previously unbeaten UJ facing ‘giant slayers’ Tuks. The Stripe Generation were up and motivated for the game from the onset, dominating the scoring in the first three quarters and as well as the small possessional duels in both defence and offence. UJ, meanwhile, looked like a side suffering from a winning hangover from the last weekend, and lost concentration in vital moments in the match.
The Orange Army did eventually awaken and looked like their old selves very late on in the fourth quarter as they were mounting a comeback. UP-Tuks held their nerve very well, to close off the game and secure an important victory, 73-68, to bring the battle for the top two closer together. UJ will want to bounce back really quickly in the next round, after suffering their first defeat since their loss to UCT in the 2018 semi-final. Furthermore UJ still have a tricky task again one of their rivals VUT.
VUT SEIZE THE INITIATIVE
VUT were then next in action against tournament debutants NWU and it was yet another polished performance by the boys from the Vaal. They started off very well but as the game progressed, their foot went off the pedal. NWU, meanwhile, showed a great fighting spirit to end the game the stronger team, with a few individuals stepping up and making the difference.
Ultimately, for VUT it was a case of doing enough to get the win, 73-57, which sees them end the fifth round with just one loss and sitting third spot with the same amount of log points as UJ and UKZN (8).
UKZN REMAIN IN THE FIGHT
UKZN, having seen VUT win their game, knew they had it all to do against UCT. The contest was a highly entertaining one, that also saw a lot of points being accumulated by both sides. UKZN in the end had more fire power that saw them off to a hard fought 100-86 victory.
UCT were unlucky to not get even closer, after having bossed the court in the third and fourth quarter. This result, though, means that UCT have only registered one win from five games so far, seeing them really struggling to live up to the standard they set for themselves in 2018.
WITS MERCILESS ON UWC
Wits started the competition inconsistently but Round 5 was a totally different story as they delivered their best performance to date, at the expense of ‘new boys’ in UWC. Wits were thoroughly dominant in the showpiece, transitioning from defence into offence at a rapid pace that often caught UWC by surprise. For the first time in the 2019 competition, Wits looked like their championship-winning side of 2018, when they played the game with such joy and energy.
UWC did however pose a threat in the second quarter, where they held the hosts really close but things soon fell apart, seeing them eventually losing out by 94-48. Wits though will be happy to have kept their hopes of a title defence alive.
By S’fiso Nyawo
