KAMPALA, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Uganda Basketball League champions, City Oilers, have set eyes on winning their maiden Federation of International Basketball Association (FIBA) Africa Champions Cup.
Mohammed Santur, the club manager told Xinhua that after making their first appearance last year, they have now strengthened the team and are targeting a better performance.
The tournament which will attract all the top teams on the African continent will take place Dec. 11-20 in Rades, Tunisia.
Santur said that that they sent their team to Alexandria, Egypt to train for two weeks and that has paid off because the players are looking better and more motivated.
"Our expectation is to win the tournament. You do not have to play 20 times to win something. It is about preparation, hard work, belief and having a good team to compete," added head coach Mande Juruni.
The coach said having won the League title in Uganda a record four straight times and also bagged the Africa Zone 5 title two months ago, they have got the experience to gun for the top trophy.
Last year in Egypt, the City Oilers lost all their four games in Group B and managed to register an 88-69 win over Cameroonian side Nzui Manto to finish ninth on the table standings.
Two of their losses came to eventual finalists Recreativo do Libolo from Angola 98-44 and AS Sale from Morocco 83-72 who claimed a Third-Place finish at the tournament.
Juruni said he is not worried about last year's outing but rather insists that amassing experience from all the events they have engaged in for the past three years is very important in their quest for glory in this edition.
The Ugandan side will lineup with seven players that featured for Uganda at the FIBA Afro Basket 2017 including the reliable pair of forwards Stanley Ocitti and Adarius Pegues as well as experienced shooting guards Stephen Omony, Ben Komakech and Jimmy Enabu.
Following is the team for the Champions Cup:
Etoile Sportive Rades (Tunisia), Kano Pillars (Nigeria), Gome Bulls (Nigeria), AS Mazembe (Democratic Republic of Congo), New Generation (DR Congo), City Oilers (Uganda), InterClube de Luanda (Angola), Sport Libolo e Benfica (Angola), Ferroviario da Beira (Mozambique), Union Sportive Monastirienne (Tunisia), Association Sportive Sale (Morocco) and Groupement Sportive Petroliers (Algeria).
