The Silverbacks, the Uganda men’s national basketball team are back in familiar territory as they mount a challenge at the upcoming 2025 Afrobasket qualifiers in Tunisia.
Head coach Mandy Juruni who linked up with the rest of the squad in the Tunisian capital Monastir on Tuesday remains optimistic ahead of tip off on Friday, revealing that the team has been in the same space before and will give their best.
“We’ve faced these teams before and are aware of what to expect. African basketball is physical and quick so we have to have defensive coverage,” Juruni told FUBA media.
“Our target is to win as many games as we can and compete hard throughout.”
In the same vein, the Silverbacks will miss the services of NBA star Ishmael Wainwright due to personal reasons but Juruni adds that the squad still includes experienced players and that the few days of training before the qualifiers begin have come in handy.
“We’re looking to field a strong squad that includes players that have experience at this level while also ensuring continuity, with some new blood, which we have achieved,” he added.
“Chemistry is key four days of training before action begins, we’re focused on getting the basics right mainly creativity as that will propel us to victory.”
Uganda gets her campaign underway on 23rd Friday against Cape Verde before facing Nigeria a day later.
Twenty national teams, divided into five groups of four will tussle it out, with each team facing an opponent in the group twice in a tournament format over three windows all through to 2025.
After the qualifiers, 16 teams will qualify for Africa’s premier basketball tourney.
The Silverbacks, who are bidding to make a fourth appearance at the Afrobasket beat the odds in 2021 to finish sixth overall after losing to Cape Verde in the quarter finals at the previous edition in Kigali Rwanda.
