)
Gazelles captain, Flavia ‘Flirsh’ Oketcho believes they deserve the spot, especially after their performance against a well-stocked Egyptian side in the Zone V qualifiers, which was ‘bound to get noticed’.
The swirling rumours on Monday morning about the Uganda Gazelles playing at the Afrobasket tournament despite their 74-65 loss to Egypt on Sunday evening at the MTN Arena Lugogo were met with a lot of optimism.
FUBA president Nasser Sserunjoji has all but confirmed the Gazelles' participation at the tournament finals after securing a wild card, pending communication from FIBA, as reported by Pulse Sports.
Gazelles captain, Flavia ‘Flirsh’ Oketcho believes they deserve the spot, especially after their performance against a well-stocked Egyptian side in the Zone V qualifiers, which was ‘bound to get noticed’.
“We deserve it,” Flirsh concurred, adding; “The Gazelles are the only team that beat a well-stocked Egyptian side and gave them the hardest of games in the qualifiers, so it was bound to get noticed."
The Lady Dolphins’ point guard also highlighted that it had been a while since the Gazelles played at this stage and that they exceeded expectations which, as a team, they are proud of.
"We did everything right (against Egypt in the final). It was then just down to not maximizing some of our opportunities,” she stated.
“But again, this is a stage we haven’t been at for a while, so in my opinion, we exceeded our expectations, and I am proud of our achievement."
The Gazelles were spurred on by a capacity crowd at the MTN Arena Lugogo for all their games, and Flirsh says she can only humbly appreciate the fans for their unwavering support throughout the tournament.
"Of course, our fans are our backbone, and they pushed us more than we can say. So, we really appreciate their support."
The Uganda Gazelles will be hoping to make their third appearance, having featured in the showpiece in 1997 and 2015.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)