City Oilers are the only team yet to register any win in the Nile Conference and are bottom of the log.
City Oilers will be eliminated from the Basketball Africa League if they fail to win against Ferroviario da Beira of Mozambique on Friday.
The Ugandan champions cannot afford to lose any of their remaining two games after faltering on three occasions already.
Defeat will rule out any chance of City Oilers getting into the top four at the end of the Nile Conference action in Cairo, Egypt.
14:24 - 03.05.2023
BAL Entire City Oilers bench has scored 23 points in three Basketball Africa League games
Against SLAC, James Okello was the only player to come off the bench and score but his two points were not enough as Oilers fell 96-68.
It is said that a crisis meeting was held in Cairo after the team’s 96-68 loss to SLAC, with everyone voicing out what they thought was going wrong and what had to be done to get back on track.
Sharing the ball and getting stops on defence are some of the aspects City Oilers must work on if they are to get anything from the two must-win games.
“We have had good conversations as a team, and I feel good going into the last games,” City Oilers head coach Mandy Juruni told Pulse Sports.
“We are not depending on anybody for us to qualify. We need to do the job ourselves,” he added.
Victory for Beira would be enough for the Mozambican side to progress to the playoffs, and that will undoubtedly add some spice to the tie.
With their backs against the wall, City Oilers’ players will have one more chance to fight or let it slip.
“Right now, we are just thinking about how we can win the next game, and the last one will take care of itself,” guard Jimmy Enabu said.
11:54 - 03.05.2023
BAL Social media coaches disappointed by City Oilers’ shambolic Basketball Africa League displays
The statistics show that the Oilers bench, comprising of locally based players, has struggled to get going and offer the necessary support off the bench.
City Oilers are the only team yet to register any win in the Nile Conference and are bottom of the log.
The only way is up, and victory on Friday would set up a photo-finish clash with Cape Town Tigers on Saturday.
The South African side led by nine points going into the fourth quarter of their clash with Beira on Wednesday but ended up losing 82-76 to drop to a 1-3 record.
The top four teams at the end of the Nile Conference action will progress to the Basketball Africa League Playoffs slated for May 21-28 in Kigali, Rwanda.
Basketball Africa League
Nile Conference
Friday fixtures
Petro de Luanda vs. Al Ahly -4pm
City Oilers vs. Ferroviario da Beira -7.30pm
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