"I am sure teams like Dolphins, First Bank, Sunshine Angels and Customs will give us a tough time, but we won't give them the chance," Erinfolami said. The team had thrashed Taraba Hurricanes 71-14, Delta Force 63-35 and GT 2000 82-29 in their first, second and third Group A matches respectively. The league's second phase will hold in Ilorin in April before the final eight play-offs in Lagos later in the year.
DAY SEVEN FIXTURES
First Deep Water v Oluyole Babes 7am
Dolphins v First Bank 9am
Sunshine Angels v IGP Queens 10am
FCT Angels v Customs 12pm
Delta Force v Immigration 1pm
AHIP Queens v Benue Queens 3pm
Taraba Hurricane v GT 2000 4pm
Coal City v Plateau Rocks 6pm
27 March 2014
NIGERIA : Zenith Bank Basketball League - First Deepwater Cruise Past Immigration
First Deepwater of Lagos showed the stuff of champions at the ongoing 2014 Zenith Bank National Female Basketball League in Abuja as they cruise past Nigerian Immigration Club 80-29 on Tuesday.
The win means the team has picked maximum points from all its four matches at the first phase of the league which started in Abuja on March 21 and will end on March 29.
The 10th edition of the league, which is now in its first phase, is holding at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Abuja National Stadium. The match saw First Deepwater displaying their superiority from the start, with the first quarter ending 18-6. They went ahead to garner 19 points in the second quarter while Immigration had just eight, and they secured 22 points in the third quarter as they ran over their opponents.
Yesterday was rest day for all the teams. Speaking at the end of the match, Coach of First Deepwater, Lateef Erinfolami, restated the team's commitment to retain the National Female Basketball League title.
"We have already said it, that we are trying to retain the cup. This is the first phase and we have been picking up with each game. "Although, we have new players in the team, but they have started to understand us more and they have gained confidence," Erinfolami told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). He however added that the team did not feel challenged by any of the clubs in the league.
"There is nothing really extraordinary in this first phase, so we want to take the opponents as they come. "But, we don't feel challenged with the teams here because we have both the experienced and young players," the coach said. He said his side was already toughened by experience and was ready for the challenge, even as it was not going to underrate any of its opponents. "We have faced tougher opponents when we represented the country at the continental level. But, irrespective of that, no opponent is weak.
"So, we will not underrate anybody. I don't underestimate any of the teams because you shouldn't rate any opponent until you play them to assess them," Erinfolami said. The coach however said only four clubs could give his team a good fight, even though he was still confident they could overcome them. "We have only four or five teams that can give us a good game on a good day here. But I still have confidence that we will retain our title.
The win means the team has picked maximum points from all its four matches at the first phase of the league which started in Abuja on March 21 and will end on March 29.
The 10th edition of the league, which is now in its first phase, is holding at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Abuja National Stadium. The match saw First Deepwater displaying their superiority from the start, with the first quarter ending 18-6. They went ahead to garner 19 points in the second quarter while Immigration had just eight, and they secured 22 points in the third quarter as they ran over their opponents.
Yesterday was rest day for all the teams. Speaking at the end of the match, Coach of First Deepwater, Lateef Erinfolami, restated the team's commitment to retain the National Female Basketball League title.
"We have already said it, that we are trying to retain the cup. This is the first phase and we have been picking up with each game. "Although, we have new players in the team, but they have started to understand us more and they have gained confidence," Erinfolami told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). He however added that the team did not feel challenged by any of the clubs in the league.
"There is nothing really extraordinary in this first phase, so we want to take the opponents as they come. "But, we don't feel challenged with the teams here because we have both the experienced and young players," the coach said. He said his side was already toughened by experience and was ready for the challenge, even as it was not going to underrate any of its opponents. "We have faced tougher opponents when we represented the country at the continental level. But, irrespective of that, no opponent is weak.
"So, we will not underrate anybody. I don't underestimate any of the teams because you shouldn't rate any opponent until you play them to assess them," Erinfolami said. The coach however said only four clubs could give his team a good fight, even though he was still confident they could overcome them. "We have only four or five teams that can give us a good game on a good day here. But I still have confidence that we will retain our title.
# posted by afrbk : 14:48
