Kolosh Boys and Cherry Bombers Crowned the Winners of the Kisumu Edition of the Red Bull Half Court Tournament

Kolosh Boys and Cherry Bombers were crowned the overall winners of the Kisumu edition of the Red Bull Half Court tournament that took place at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Sports Complex in Kisumu.

A total of thirty teams registered in the qualifier with twenty-one men’s teams and nine teams in the women’s category.

Kolosh boys beat the Raiders 18-15 in a tightly contested men’s final. While in the women’s category Kakamega based Cherry Bombers beat home team Adili Divas 19-14 to secure the much deserved slot to the National qualifiers.

In the semifinal matches played earlier in the day Adili Divas beat Adili Sparks 11-5 in the first Semi Final match of the day. Last year’s finalists Urban Ville Vanguards lost 4-5 to Cherry Bloomers in the second semifinal match of the day.

In the men’s first semifinal match of the day Raiders beat panthers 12-11 while in the second semifinal match of the day Kolosh boys beat Lukos 13-11 to book a slot in the finals with the competition gaining popularity in the region.

Western region tournament organizer Lusaga Brian said this year’s edition of the Kisumu qualifier attracted many teams from the region which is a testament to the growing popularity of the 3 on 3 basketball.

“The turnout of the participants has been huge and diverse because we have had people from all age brackets register for the competition. This reiterates Kisumu as the cradle of talent in the country. We are happy that Red Bull has decided to tap on this grass root talent.” Says Lusaga.

Three on three National Coordinator Zaddock Adika on his part expressed satisfaction with the improvement on the quality of skill in the basketball space in the country.

“This year there have been more teams participating. People are warming up to 3 on 3 basketball and the skill level has increased compared to last year. We would like to encourage more fans and players to come and support the game more.” Expresses Adika

Cherry Bombers Captain Praise Taifa Captain said they were optimistic of a good performance going into the competition considering the preparation they did as a run up to the competition.

“We are happy that we won. We knew we were going to face tough competition, especially from the Kisumu team but we were really prepared and we are happy we have.’ Says Praise

She further urged more ladies’ teams to register for such competitions because of the opportunities it provided in harnessing and improving their talent.

“I would like to urge other teams to participate in such tournaments. This was our first time participating and we won. I would encourage more ladies to play the game going to the National finals. We will need to work on our shooting to increase our chance of winning.” Praise added.

The format of Kenya’s only nationwide three on three basketball tournament follows the Federation International Basketball Authority (FIBA) rules where teams play for ten minutes to score twenty-one points max. In the case of a tie, the team that scores two points first wins the game. In each qualifier, the teams will play in a 1st round pool play where the team that accumulates the most scoring points is rewarded with a bonus point and a qualification spot in the knockout stage.

Focus now shifts to the Nairobi qualifiers which will be played on the 20th of May. The Nairobi qualifier will be followed by the National finals on the 27th of May at the USIU grounds where teams will be fighting for a chance to play in the world finals to be held in Belgrade, Serbia.