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HARARE won the boys’ and girls’ National Association of Secondary School Heads (Nash) Under-17 National Basketball Championships held at the new Eveline High School courts on Saturday. On their way to lifting the boys’ trophy, Harare, who won all their Pool B matches, beat pre-tournament favourites Bulawayo 39-38 in a cliff-hanger semi-final.
After clearing the Bulawayo hurdle, Harare went on to clobber Mashonaland East 41-27 in the final. The girls from the capital won their four Pool B matches, beating Matabeleland North 37-15 in the first game, Matabeleland South 35-24, Mashonaland West 40-8 and Masvingo 40-21.
Harare then whipped Mashonaland East 52-20 in the semi-final and had no mercy for Matabeleland South in the final, thumping them 53-29. Eveline High headmistress Sithabile Moyo said the tournament was a success and was hopeful that local schools would take advantage of their renovated courts.
“It was an exciting weekend of basketball. The level of competition was good and I believe in terms of hosting, this was one of the best ever tournaments. Everything was excellent,” said Moyo.
“Now that this national tournament is over, these four courts which we renovated will not lie idle as we intend to stage more local competitions. This is a legacy not only for Eveline students, but the community. We hope through the competitions we will hold at these courts, we will be able to contribute towards the development of basketball in Bulawayo,” she said.
Dan Moyo, the Bulawayo provincial education director, said: “The national championships are growing and becoming more successful and so is basketball and it won’t stop. There is so much untapped potential in all the basket-balling cities of the country.”
Results
Boys
Group A: Bulawayo 38-40 Midlands, Matabeleland South 24-38 Masvingo, Mashonaland Central 32-34 Bulawayo, Midlands 41-22 Matabeleland South, Masvingo 30-51 Mashonaland Central, Bulawayo 51-28 Matabeleland South, Midlands 43-54 Masvingo, Matabeleland South 29-56 Bulawayo, Masvingo 29-36 Bulawayo, Midlands 47-46
Group B: Mashonaland West 16-26 Harare, Matabeleland North 11-49 Manicaland, Mashonaland East 27-34 Mashonaland West, Harare 55-9 Matabeleland North, Manicaland 25-42 Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West 32-22 Matabeleland North, Harare 30-22 Manicaland, Matabeleland North 14-43 Mashonaland east, Manicaland 37-25 Mashonaland West, Mashonaland East 25-36 Harare
Semi-finals: Harare 39-38 Bulawayo, Mashonaland East 40-34Midlands
Final: Harare 41-27 Mashonaland East
Girls
Pool A: Bulawayo 39-23 Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland east 29-20 Manicaland, Midlands 34-27 Bulawayo, Mashonaland central 36-45 Mashonaland east, Manicaland 30-31 Midlands, Bulawayo 30-37 Mashonaland east, Mashonaland central 30-33 Manicaland, Mashonaland East 26-34 Midlands, Manicaland 17-26 Bulawayo, Mashonaland Cenntral 31-35 Midlands
Pool B: Harare 37-15 Matabeleland North, Mashonaland West 16-32 Masvingo, Matabeleland South 24-35 Harare, Matabeleland North 15-22 Mashonaland West, Masvingo 4-28 Matabeleland South, Harare 40-8 Mashonaland West, Matabeleland North 32-23 Masvingo, Masvingo 21-40 Harere, Matabeleland South 32-17 Matabeleland North
Semi-finals: Harare 52-20 Mashonaland East, Matabeleland South 35-18 Midlands
Final: Harare 53-29 Matabeleland South
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