The Sunday Mail
Tinashe Kusema in MUTARE
Eastern region giants and former National League champions Mercenaries yesterday made light work of Dangamvura Knights (80-52) and Bond Knights (79-49) to book their place in today’s semi-finals of the Basketball Union of Zimbabwe (BUZ) National League Championship Qualifiers at Mutare Boys High School.
Mercenaries were scheduled to play Harare side Bucs last night but the match was largely academic.
However, the Harare side’s shock 35-47 loss to Dangamvura Knights yesterday served as a cautionary tale for Mercenaries head coach Innocent Sithole.
“I think the challenge is and has always been the semi-final stages. Now that we have won our first two games and qualified, the real work starts,’’ said Sithole.
Mercenaries have represented the country at the Basketball Africa League (BAL) qualifiers twice.
They went into the current qualifiers as clear favourites.
They now find themselves just two wins away from making the BUZ National League finals later this month.
The top three teams from the qualifiers will join teams such as Foxes, Vixens, JBC and UZ Stars, who are the defending champions and hosts of the finals in Harare.
It is, however, the pressure of the favourites tag that seems to worry Sithole more than anything else.
“Winning the national league is every team’s goal as it promises participating at the BAL qualifiers and the lucrative tournament proper.
“However, you can’t get there unless you go through the qualifiers,” he said.
The BUZ National League qualifiers have been a mixed bag.
The tournament commissioner, Perseverance Mhene, believes the games have been competitive.
“It’s been an otherwise good tournament, I have to admit,” he said.
“I have, however, been impressed with the basketball that I have seen so far.
“There are no favourites or small teams, as every team came to the party.
“I have seen some high-level competitive games, with none of those big scorelines we had grown accustomed to.
“It just shows that every province is doing well, and that is good for the sport in the long run.”
