A win and a loss

The Rhodes University Basketball Club’s 1st teams took on the University of Fort Hare teams in a Nelson Mandela Basketball Association league fixture, on Wednesday. The Rhodes women’s team fought hard but were unable to take the win in the end, the final score for the woman’s game was 18-25 to Fort Hare. The men’s team put up a fight against the opposing Fort Hare team and won the game 54-38.

The Rhodes woman’s team were the first to score a goal but were overtaken by the visitors who displayed aggressive and quick recovery in their attack side.

The Rhodes team captain Lerato Ratshefola noted that the game was “quite tough in the begging” and the team was “unsure of their expectations”. However, the team made a strong come back in the second half using “half court and full court pressure”, but this was not enough as Fort Hare was a “strong team” and beat the Rhodes team with a final score of 18-25 to Fort Hare.

Fort Hare captain Siphosiwe Ngware admitted that she “thought the team (Fort Hare) could have done better“and had hoped for a higher score difference, but was none-theless pleased with the outcome of the game, adding that the Rhodes team’s playing style “has improved since the last game”.

The men’s game was fast paced, with both teams dis- playing aggressive defence and attacking techniques.

Fort Hare vice-captain Lunga Dikana said it was a good game but that the team played with the mentality that it would be a different game in terms of aggressiveness and playing style, but also noted that the team would have to be prepared for a fight “as Rhodes had not yet beaten us, it was almost a revenge game for Rhodes”. For Rhodes captain Arnold Mlandeli, the match was the last one as he retires from basketball. Mlandeli noted that “as a team we (the men’s team) played a great game and beat Fort Hare very convincingly”.

When Mlandeli was asked what he thought of his last game he responded with a simple “all I did was to come out here to have, fun and I did”. The men’s team ended the game with awarding the man of match, as voted for by the crowd of supporters with a sweater, to Siyabulela Mteto.

The supporters came out in their numbers , filling every bench in the Basketball arena, dancing along to the accompanying music in the background while cheering the Rhodes team on in high spirits. The Rhodes soccer team also made an appearance, cheering for the Rhodes teams and encouraging the crowd to keep up the cheering.

With one loss and one win under their belt, the Rhodes teams hope for more wins. sport@grocotts.co.za

@GrocottsSport