VUT would be a Varsity Basketball semi-final shoe-in, but the 2019 tournament goes from Round 7 straight to a final so their Wits clash is a be-all or end-all.
The 2019 campaign began very well for VUT, who were unbeaten in their first three games of the tournament. They then lost against UKZN to put pressure on this weekend’s action. As such, they started well enough by beating NWU (73-57) before log-leaders UJ pegged them back on Friday.
VUT now have a tricky task on their hands, they have to beat Wits comprehensively (to better their points difference) and hope other results at Wits Sports Hall go their way.
The Vaal team’s coach Thabang Kgwedi is choosing to remain confident of sneaking into the top two come Saturday night.
“Our team this year isn’t as experienced as the team we had in 2018, we have a lot of youngsters that have great potential, which has been evident on the court so far. But against Wits, it will all depend on if they show up on the day and if they do, I’m quite confident that we will beat Wits,” Kgwedi tells varsitysportssa.com.
The Vaal team’s coach will know that Wits have improved their play in recent games, particularly on attack. The defending champions’ experienced players like Angelo Quinn and Miguel Ferrao are proficient at three-pointers, which is an area VUT will have to shut down.
“Wits will play in their usual energetic way against us, we are ready for whatever comes our way. We will stick to our plan, which will help us achieve what we need to, in order to win the game. So we are not really focussed too much on them but rather ourselves,” Kgwedi claims.
VUT have looked a more clinical team in 2019, winning some of closely contested games that could have gone either way. When asked if the preparation ahead of the tournament was any different, Kgwedi explained that he wishes they had had more time to prepare.
“We actually hardly had time to prepare properly for this tournament, but competing at the USSAs in Cape Town earlier this year, helped us quite a bit. We couldn’t really train much due to the holiday break for the universities and all the players not being available. So to answer your question, we’ve just trained less rather than doing anything different.” Kgwedi concludes.
VUT and Wits will lock horns at 17:30 in the crucial match-up which could determine who progresses further in the tournament at the Wits Sports Hall.
By S’fiso Nyawo
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