NBBF names 24 All Star players

The Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF, has released a list of 24 players and six officials from the Atlantic and Savannah Conferences of the Dstv Premier League for this weekend’s All Stars game scheduled for the University of Lagos indoor hall in Akoka, Lagos.

According to the NBBF/DStv League Director, Agboola Pinheiro, 12 players and three officials each were selected from the two conferences for the game holding in Lagos on Saturday with Kano Pillars and Mark Mentors dominating the Savannah Conference list.

“The Savannah Conference will be handled by coaches Peter Ahmedu (Mark Mentors) and Abdulrahaman Mohammed(Gombe Bulls) with former international, Lawal Garba as Team Manager while Coaches Adeboye Aderiboye (Oluyole Warriors) and Chris Nomingo (Dodan Warriors) will handle the Atlantic Conference team with former international, Deji Jaiyeola as Team Manager,” Pinheiro disclosed in Lagos.

Coach Sani Ahmed of Kano Pillars is Head coach of the Savannah All Stars team but has some family commitments while Head coach of the Atlantic Conference, Lati Erinfolami of Islanders, who is also coach of First Deep Water Basketball team will be leading his team to Ilorin for the second phase of the Zenith Bank Women’s League.

Players picked from the Savannah Conference are Abubakar Usman, Dele Ademola, Mathew Monya, Onyeka Okeke and Adeolu Ojoh from Kano Pillars, Stanley Gumut, Abdul Yahaya, Akpara Akiti and Timothy Kwor from Mark Mentors, Chibuzor John, Plateau Peaks, John Mathais and Joseli Ibrahim from Gombe Bulls.

The Atlantic Conference players are Chiwendu Nwaigbo and Ibrahim Okpe from Islanders, Obum Onyia, William Ndouba, Solomon Ajebeyi and Boniface Synesius from Union Bank, Azouma Dike and Mamadou Savadogo from Dodan Warriors, Lanre Alimi, Kwara Falcons, Emmanuel Balogun, Customs and Femi Adekanye, Oluyole Warriors.

DStv Premier Basketball League, Islanders, Union Bank, Customs win the battle of the Atlantic…

DStv Premier Basketball League, Islanders, Union Bank, Customs win the battle of the Atlantic…. As Kano Pillars holds off Mark Mentors in the Savannah

Week-5 pairing of the 2013/2014 season of the DStv Premier Basketball League was decided across the Atlantic and Savannah Conferences of the league.

In one of the three games decided in Lagos over the weekend, Islanders basketball club return to the summit of the Atlantic conference with a hard fought 68-55 points’ victory over Oluyole Warriors basketball club of Ibadan.

The high profile Game-18 pairing saw both sides sharing the four quarters evenly with Islanders coming from behind twice in the first and third quarters (10-13 and 15-17) to upstage their Ibadan rival wining the second and fourth quarters by 21-10 and 22-15 points for a cumulative score-line of 68-55 points to make it a 4-1 record with an overall 316 points from five games.

Islanders’ basketball club quartet of Ibrahim Okpe; Seyi Ayodele; John Ohwe and Chiwendu Nwaigbo hit a double figure each to aid their side victory.

Coach Ayinla Johnson of Union Bank given instruction to his boys during the 2014 Nigeria DStv Premier Male Basketball League held at the Indoor Sports Hall of National Stadium, Surulere. Union Bank won by 64-62 points.

Okpe (16 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assist); Ayodele (16 points, 2 rebound and 2 steal); Ohwe (15 points and 3 rebound) and Nwaigbo (12 points, 9 rebound and 4 assist).

Union Bank basketball club steal a last quarter rally to go past hard fighting Dodan Warriors basketball club by 64-62 points in their match-up.

The ‘Stallion’ upturned a three points’ third quarter ending deficit (46-49) to remain in fourth place on the conference log.

Union Bank with a 3-2 records was led in scoring by its Togolese import Arnold Yacoubou with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assist; Solomon Ajegbeyi landed a double double of 10 points and 12 rebounds while swingman Emeka Ajaegbu added 10 points and 3 steal.

Coach Lati Erinfolami of Lagos Islanders given instructions to his boys during the 2014 Nigeria DStv Premier Male Basketball League held at the Indoor Sports Hall of National Stadium, Surulere. Lagos Islanders won by 68-55 points.

Nigeria Customs completed the Lagos wing of the Atlantic conference win with a 58-46 points win over two-time champion of the league Royal Hoopers basketball club of Port Harcourt.

The ‘Border Boy’ came off a 07-14 points first quarter deficit to out-play the Hoopers in the second quarter through fourth (16-11, 15-11 and 20-10).

Customs forward and Captain Victor Kadiri led his team quest for honours with a double double of 14 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assist and 2 block-shots with youthful combo guard Emmanuel Balogun adding 15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steal and 2 assist just as Police Baton snatched an away win of 62-60 points over Kwara Falcons basketball club of Ilorin.

The big win by the Police Baton was a kind of boost for the Police side who began the season on a shaky note after losing its first three games before handling Customs a 55-47 points’ victory during the week-4 local derby in Lagos.

Meanwhile defending champion have continue from where it left off last season by remaining the only team in the 16-team league that have kept a clean slate as it holds off star-studded Mark Mentors basketball club of Abuja last weekend in Kano.

The Coach Sani Ahmed tutored Pillars side defeated their closest rival in the Savannah conference by 69-62 points in a pulsating match watched by capacity crowd at the gymnasium of the Sani Abacha stadium to end Mark Mentors unbeaten run.

Pillars that enjoy a 5-0 record have accumulated 418 point-scored which translate to an average of 83.6 points per-game.

The week became more interesting as Niger Potters basketball club of Minna end its winless season with a 52-47 points away win over Nigeria Immigration in Kaduna with Plateau Peaks basketball club of Jos adding to the woes of Kaduna-based teams when it humbled Kada Stars basketball club of Kaduna by 70-48 points.

DStv league new entrant Gombe Bulls basketball club continue with its superb form when it posted a massive 85-45 points victory over neighbor Bauchi Nets basketball club at the National Sports Commission (NSC) gymnasium in Gombe.

The Abdulrahman Mohammed coached Bulls are now third on the log of the Savannah conference Mark Mentors and conference leader Kano Pillars with an eye for the final-8 playoff.

Lukman Kuti in jersey No 5 of Customs going for a dunk and been block by Ikachi Ochoma in jersey No 10 of Royal Hoppers during the 2014 Nigeria DStv Premier Male Basketball League held at the Indoor Sports Hall of National Stadium, Surulere. Customs won by 58-46 points.