In a show of wits, character and perhaps a stroke of serendipity, Livingstone Basketball Club overcame a 15 points deficit in the fourth quarter to force the tie breaking game five in the FUBA Division 1 Finals. The epic game four encounter of the best of five Finals series that transpired at the YMCA Wandegeya courts was a testament to that old saying that “its never over until the fat lady sings” and to the unpredictability of the competition in the Uganda Division 1. The Jaguars had been off to a steady start winning Q1 marginally 16-15 and going into the half time break with a 7 points advantage (33-26). As it has been thus far in this series, Livingstone third quarter woes continued to haunt and they’d fall back a whopping 15 points going into the fourth quarter.  

Pressed against the wall, with the trophy on the line and perhaps nuggets of desperation, Livingstone resorted to pressure defense and quick offense but seemingly, Jaguars were not yielding. Bismarck Omoya (18 points, 11 Rebs) came up clutch providing the leadership Livingstone needed in desperate times. But it’s Forward Diopa Durocher who did the most scoring damage ramping up 25 points and collecting 7 Rebs. Point guard Joshua Namutegere shot the biggest three pointer of his young career to secure the wild ending win for Livingstone. Joshua would finish with a tally of 17 points and 3 Assists.

JT Jaguars will continue to wonder how they smoked up to a 16 point lead in Q4. The Jaguars coached by Sudi Ulanga played awesomely the entire game but found themselves in a TimeOut-less conundrum in the end game. Nightly notable for the JT Jaguars even in defeat was Benjamin Shango’s double-double of 18 points and 11 Rebs, Were Mark and Ian Lubwama combined for 29 points with 17 points and 12 points respectively. Veteran point guard Yesman Bushiri scored the three-pointer on the horn that called Jaguars game 3 victory, finished with 8 points.  

Whereas both JT Jaguars and Livingstone by virtue of being in the Div 1 Finals earned qualification to the Uganda NBL – the highest league in the country, their odysseys could never have been more parallel. It’s taken only 2 years for JT Jaguars to get to the NBL; Last season they panned up Div 2 Champions to earn qualification to Div 1 and this season earning simultaneous qualification this time to the most prestigious league in the country – an historic feat that has only been achieved by the City Oilers. On the contrary, it’s been a two decade long journey for LivingStone to get to the NBL but the team has seen tremendous success for the past three years under the stewardship of their Chairman Ahmed Pai Kamoga and Coach Eric Matovu. And perhaps, their biggest acquisition was Bismarck ‘Oneal’ Omoya. With him, Livingstone won the Div 2 Championship and promotion to Div 1 in 2021, narrowly missed making the Div 1 Finals of 2022 with a close semi finals game 3 loss to Rez Life and finally achieving the holy grail in 2023 with the semi finals win over Nkumba Marines. Nobody draws these contrasts better than Abel Emwodu, The Livingstone O.G who has only played passionately for this one team for close to two decades.

I’ve waited for this moment for sixteen years! Sixteen years waiting for this moment –

Abel said after Livingstone’s entry into the NBL with defeat of Nkumba Marines.

The FUBA Div 1 Finals are a best of five series. With the series now tied at 2-2, Livingstone BC and JT Jaguars will now square up in the final Showdown to decide the Div 1 Champion for 2023 on Friday 1^st December 2023, at 7PM, at the YMCA Wandegeya.

By Cucu Brian | Twitter: @Cucubrian | brian@basketball256.net    

In a historic showdown between two Ugandan brothers, Arthur Kaluma and Adam Seiko faced off in the NCAA March Madness Elite 8 level, with San Diego State’s Adam Seiko ultimately coming out on top with a final score of 57-56 against Creighton University.

What is most fantastical is that the brothers, and their family, went through this last year, when Creighton rallied from a 9-point deficit in the final two minutes and beat San Diego State in overtime in a first-round game in Fort Worth.

With the game tied at 56-56, The Aztecs ran down the clock and had a midcourt inbounds with 6.7 seconds left. The original play wasn’t open and Lamont Butler inbounded to Aguek Arop, who handed off to Darrion Trammell, who dribbled off a ball screen and lofted a floater from just inside the free-throw line with the Bluejays’ Nembhard on his back. The shot bounce off the front rim but with the referee’s whistle and a review of a foul call with 1.2 seconds left. Trammell missed the first and made the second for the Aztecs win.

Lamont Butler led the Aztecs with 18 points. Trammell had 12. Nathan Mensah had eight, including a clutch jumper with 1:35 that put them up 56-54 after Creighton had drawn even on a pair of baskets by 7-foot-1 Ryan Kalkbrenner (17 points). Arthur Kaluma scored 12 points and 5 rebounds on 37 minutes on the floor and a 4/8 Shooting.

The Aztecs shot just 37.7%, below Creighton’s 40%, but they compensated with 13 offensive rebounds that they converted into 13 second-chance points. They also held the Bluejays to two of 17 behind the three-point arc.

Despite being on opposing teams, both brothers have expressed their admiration and support for each other throughout the tournament. Kaluma watched from the tunnel as Seiko delivered the go-ahead 3-pointer in San Diego State’s upset of top-ranked Alabama. The brothers are immensely proud of each other, but also make sure that the other knows his place. Arthur Kaluma has on several occasions boastfully made the pronouncement — that his brother can’t guard him and usually Seiko just rolls his eyes.

. “It’s an amazing experience, watching my brother play and then having the chance to play against him — especially at this level” – Arthur Kaluma.

The boys’ father, Patrick had introduced them to soccer when they were growing up, but Seiko soon was bitten by the basketball bug and Arthur followed along, impatiently running onto the court with a basketball during any timeout or halftime break during Adam’s youth games.

As he got older, Arthur watched his older brother — the diligence with which he studied the game and worked in the gym. When he was in middle school, Arthur asked Adam to help improve his ball handling. So Adam set up a series of cones for a dribbling drill in the front yard of their home in California.

“Every time I’d mess up a drill more than three times, he’d just walk out and go, ‘Man, you’re never going to get this,’” Arthur said. “At a young age, that kind of hurt.”
But Arthur kept at it, and while Adam was on his way to San Diego State, Arthur sprouted up, shooting past his brother by the time he entered high school. Soon, they began playing competitive games against each other — and Arthur’s indomitable self-confidence had found a receptacle in which to take root.

The success of these Ugandan siblings in the NCAA March Madness tournament is a source of pride for their family and their home country -Uganda. The brothers are key features of the Uganda National Basketball Team – The Silverbacks.

As the San Diego State Aztecs prepare for the Final Four, Ugandans will be cheering on Adam Seiko and his team, hoping to see them carry the prestigious NCAA championship title. San Diego University will go against FL Atlantic on Sunday 2nd April. It is without a doubt that the brothers continue to inspire a new generation of basketball players in Uganda with their success and dedication to the game.

Editorial & Cucu Brian

If the NBL opener between 8 times straight National Champions, City Oilers and KIU Titans is anything of a believable precursor of what’s to come this season, then we are definitely out for some scary hours. The KIU Titans with their acquisitions coming into this season were dubbed the challengers to the status quo – at least on paper, but on opening night, they look lesser than that expectation. The reigning champions, City Oilers defeated KIU Titans 79-51 in a one-sided affair.

From the opening whistle, City Oilers looked dominant and never let their foot off the pedal. They won all four quarters, scoring 21-8, 18-12, 24-18, and 16-13 respectively, showcasing their depth of talent across the team.
Titus Lual was a standout player in his NBL debut for City Oilers, scoring a huge double-double of 20 points and 14 rebounds. Point guard Fayed Baale also made an impact, adding 11 points to the team’s scoreline. Ruai Luak has also returned to this Oilers roster after his stint in Russia with Zenith Basketball. Ruai scored 9 points.

But it was Michael Ngut, the team’s new import from South Sudan’s Cobra Basketball Club, who stole the show in the first quarter. Ngut scored an impressive 12 points before being forced to leave the court due to an injury. Despite only playing for 15 minutes, Ngut managed to score a total of 15 points, giving a glimpse of his talent and potential for the rest of the season.

Although the Titans struggled throughout the game, with only Stanley Mugerwa and Saidi Melo Amisi scoring double digits with 18 and 11 points respectively, it was clear that City Oilers were the stronger team on the night. With the likes of Jimmy Enabu and Ben Komakech coming off the bench and the addition of Hakim Ghedi as their center, the Oilers are tipped to dominate the league this season.

But this was only the opening game of a long season, and anything can happen along the way. However, City Oilers’ performance in this game showcased why they are the team to beat and the extent of their talent across the roster.
City Oilers’ dominance in the opening game of the Uganda National Basketball League against KIU Titans has set the tone for what could be an exciting and unpredictable season. With the Oilers looking unstoppable with their mix of youthful energy and experience, it will be interesting to see if any team can challenge their dominance in the upcoming games.

By Cucu Brian

Robinson Opong Odoch is a shooting guard for the Uganda National Basketball Team – The silverbacks. He is a certified bucket. Opong boasts of a wealth of experience collected in Canada and allover Africa.

In the 2017 Afrobasket, Opong led the Silverbacks in minutes, points and steals. Opong attended Cegep de Sainte-Foy, Quebec (high school). Went to LIU Brooklyn & Roger State Colleges. His illustrious career includes featuring for Saint John Mill Rats, Antonine, Uganda’s NBL Champions Cityoilers , Obila, Halifax Hurricanes, Ferroviario da Beira, Penas Huesca , Saskatchewan Rattlers and in the Basketball Africa League (BAL) this year for Nigeria’s River Hoopers.