MASERU – The Lesotho Basketball Association (LBA) will host its annual Winter Money Tournament this weekend at Lehakoe Recreational Centre.
So far, 12 teams have registered – five women’s teams and seven men’s. According to the association’s public relations officer, Hopolang Hoala, this year’s edition will be bigger and different to all editions before it.
Hoala said the LBA has managed to secure sponsors for the tournament and, for the first time, winning teams will go home richer with cash prizes on top of the medals and trophies they usually receive.
The two sponsors for the 2019 Winter Money Tournament are SIMA Communications and Big Mama Food. Each sponsor will provide the services they specialise in.
SIMA Communications, which is a sports betting company, will also sponsor shirts to the tournament’s match officials while Big Mama Food will handle the catering.
The Winter Money Tournament is also a chance for the LBA to show a united front.
Over the last year, the LBA has experienced internal instability which caused some of the association’s activities to stop.
After a bout of infighting, the association went for elections earlier this year and the new executive committee insist they are committed to making sure basketball grows in Lesotho.
Hoala said this weekend’s tournament is meant to reassure basketball followers after the chaos the LBA has experienced.
“We want to calm the nerves of basketball fans and this tournament is different in the sense that we are going to give cash prizes on top of the medals that the winners always get and we also have sponsors,” Hoala told thepost on Wednesday.
“We are going to have action plans, we are going to have a constitution and a code of conduct in the office and we are also going to come up with events even after this,” he added.
Hoala said the LBA wants to bring basketball followers together again and it will adopt accountability in order to make sure the problems of the past year do not come up again in future.
“Accountability for success and failure is one key thing we need to adopt,” Hoala underlined.
“As the LBA executive, we are to hold each member of the basketball community accountable over everything we carry out. Our officials and teams should be responsible for the running of the league. They should be held accountable for all proceedings, planning and involvement of all stakeholders,” he said.
Hoala also revealed that the playoffs for the 2018/19 National Basketball League (NBL) season will finally resume next month.
The new NBL season will then begin in September, Hoala added.
The registration period for the 2019/20 season will start immediately after the play-offs conclude next month and a 2018/19 NBL champion is at last decided.
Winter Money Tournament Confirmed Women’s Teams:
Lerotholi Polytechnic
Lichocha Shooting Rifles
Tornado 98ers
NUL Rovers
Bokamoso South Sharks
Confirmed Men’s Teams:
KTA All Stars
Tornado 98ers
Lerotholi Polytechnic
NUL Rovers
Bashana Ba Heso
Bloem Alumni
Bokamoso North Bad Boys
Lialuma
Tlalane Phahla