UJ Basketball Team Crowned 2023 USSA Champions

The University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) senior men’s basketball team, known as UJ Orange Wave, achieved a remarkable victory as they were crowned champions of the 2023 University Sport South Africa (USSA) tournament.

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The Orange Wave men, triumphing in all six games, displayed an impressive unbeaten streak. In the opening match, they started with a resounding 69-37 victory against the University of Free State. Continuing their momentum, they secured wins of 63-43 against Stellenbosch University, 93-33 against Mangosuthu University of Technology, and 78-54 against the University of Pretoria in the quarter-final. In the semi-final, they defeated the University of Cape Town with a score of 63-44, and in the final, they emerged victorious over Tshwane University of Technology with a score of 73-58.

The championship, hosted by the University of KwaZulu-Natal, also saw the participation of UJ Galaxy, UJ’s senior women’s basketball team. Although they fell short in the semi-final, narrowly losing 47-51 to the University of Pretoria, they demonstrated remarkable determination with a relatively young and inexperienced squad bolstered by just two experienced players.

Mandla Ngema, the head coach, expressed his delight at the victory, stating, “Winning here tonight is more of a relief because we have been finishing in second places, but this time around I think we have made our management and the UJ community happy. I’m ecstatic.”

Nino Dim, the captain of Orange Wave, shared their tournament strategy, saying, “Throughout the tournament, our aim was to finish as champions. I told the boys to play as if we were 20 points down, to go harder. We did exactly that, and I’m proud of the team. We showed character, resilience, and determination. Finally, we are the champions after coming short of victory in the past two years.”

Source: UJ Basketball crowned 2023 USSA Champions

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Photo: Supplied by Northcliff Melville Times