By Ifeanyi Eduzor
President of Crown Elite Sports, organizers of the on-going Crown Elite basketball championship, Hanson Oguche said his organisation is organizing the competition in order to improve the dunk and slam game in the country , keep the players in top shape as well as have the opportunity to show case Nigeria’s best and brightest basketball talents on the national and international stage.
He told our correspondent yesterday that he’s excited that all the eight teams in the five- day championship are living up to expectation with a promise that the eventual winners will have the chance of participating in an international basketball championship tour in the United States .
“ This is just the our own little way of not only developing basketball in the country but encouraging our players to excel in the profession and we’re encouraged by the successes recorded in the first edition which made this year’s edition inevitable”, he said.
Oguche while explaining that his outfit is poised to become the most renowned forum for national and international player recruitment, charged governments at all levels and corporate organisations to invest more in basketball.
Meanwhile after guiding his team to two wins in a row which included an emphatic 62-57 points victory over NBBF Premier League champions, River Hopers, founder/ Coach of Lagos Legends Basketball Club, Benjamin Peters said that his team is in high spirit to overcome all odds and emerge the winner of the tournament.
He explained that he’s happy with the hard earned victory in the most entertaining match of the Group stage of the championship positing that they’re out to do more and be crowned champions.
Eight teams namely; Ebun Comets, Kwara Falcons, Lagos Islanders, UniLag basketball team, Rivers Hopers, Dodan Warriors , Lagos Legends and Raptors are participating in the championship.
Winner of the tournament will go home with N 1.5 million while the first and second runners- up will be N 1 million and N 500,000 richer.
In the day two of the tournament, Lagos Islanders recorded a 52-48 points victory over Kwara Falcons just as Lagos Legends beat Dodan Warriors by 75 baskets to 39.
