Zone V Club Championship:
City Oilers 72-49 Ulinzi
Finally they have what they have worked for in the last three seasons.
City Oilers are Zone V Club Championship conquerors after easing to the title with an unbeaten record in Dar el Salam, Tanzania.
Oilers, favourites from the start of the tournament, started strong and rushed into a 14-3 lead in the first quarter.
The lead was maintained and the two sides went to rest after the first 10 minutes with Oilers carrying a 9-point advantage (18-9).
The Kenyans started the second quarter stronger offensively but their 12 points were not enough to shake Oilers as the 9-point lead was maintained as the two sides went into the half time break.
Ulinzi opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer but Oilers’ offensive lavishness was too much for the Kenyans. The lead stretched to 14 points midway through the third quarter with Stanley Ocitti and Landry Ndikumana leading the scoring.
The last 10 minutes still belonged to the Ugandan side as they stretched the lead to 16 points with 7 minutes left on the clock.
Jimmy Enabu and company went on to register yet another win but more importantly win the title for the first time in their history.
Kami Kabange and Enabu scored 17 points each while James Okello and Ndikumana contributed 13 and 12 respectively to guide Oilers to victory.
Oilers started the tournament with a comfortable win over their finals opponents before running over Espoir, ABC and Citizen.
They eased past Kenyan side USIU in the semis to book their place in the finals.
Mandy Juruni’s charges announced their arrival at the table of men in 2014 when they finished third at the event held in Mombasa, Kenya.
To make their intentions clear, Oilers signed 2014 tournament MVP Landry Ndikumana from Urunani to add to their arsenal in search of the coveted crown.
The 2015 edition in Kigali, Rwanda brought the best out of Oilers but the Ugandan champions fell short in the finals as they lost to Egyptian side Gezira.
With Sammy Kalwanyi leaving after getting a scholarship in the US, Juruni added Brian Ssentongo and Jonah Otim from to further strengthen the team.
“Our target is Zone V and all the players know it,” Juruni boldly stated early in the national league season as his side made light work of their opposition.
City Oilers will now represent Uganda at the Africa Club Championship to be held in Cairo, Egypt later this year.
UCU Canons, Uganda’s other representatives finished sixth at the event.