This weekend, JKL Lady Dolphins have to brace themselves for back-to- back league games against UPDF Lady Tomahawks and Angels basketball club in Lubowa and YMCA on Saturday, May 9 and Sunday, May 10 respectively.
By then, JKL will probably have recovered enough from the rigours of last Sunday, May 3, when they had to labour for their 47-37 victory over the Victoria She Crocs at YMCA in Wandegeya. On the face of it, one could think that because JKL won by a difference of 10 points, it was smooth sailing.
However, they could not be further from the truth. It was tough, gritty and energy sapping, especially when you consider that JKL only had seven players to use, from the mandatory 12, as Victoria boasted.
For a basketball fan, nurtured in the spirit of the sport, JKL is showing commendable fighting spirit and resolve, an attitude none more so showcased by their shooting guard, Tamasha Nsubuga.
Incidentally, JKL has played its last eight National Basketball League (NBL) games with six of seven players at most. This has meant that for whoever has been on the court, they have put in a shift, including the league’s longest-serving player, Flavia Oketcho, who is in her twenty-fourth season.
But for Nsubuga, who is in her fifth season, if one is to count the two she played while at Nabisunsa Secondary School between 2022 and 2023, she is now in her third season at JKL. Yet, she never imagined it would be this tough in 2026.
On Sunday, after playing through the 2 pm game, under the scorching sun, all through 4:30 pm when it concluded, Nsubuga concluded it had been such a tough experience for her.
In fact, seeing how they were moving on the court, particularly during the second half of the game, one could only be left wondering whether JKL players still had any limbs left. Their movement was gingerly; one would think the entire team was about to collapse.
“For sure, it was tough out there. First, the conditions beat us badly. We never train in such hot conditions. Then, add the fact that we did not approach the game right in the first quarter. We let ourselves be dictated by our opponents with their transition game. While they could afford to play like that, we should never have fallen for it because we do not have the numbers,” Nsubuga said.
Yet, even with that, JKL sobered up and later dictated and controlled the game, which saw them improve from the six points only, that they scored in the first quarter. But more crucially, Nsubuga was instrumental on offence, a pointer to her ever growing value in the team.
While she averaged 15 minutes of play in previous seasons, Nsubuga admitted that this season has taught her how to become a leader and take more responsibility. She has been on court for an average of 30 minutes per game.
She literally plays the entire game of 40 minutes these days. On Sunday, she rested for one minute and 23 seconds. As a result, she scored 20 of the team’s 47 points. Right now, Nsubuga is one of the leading scorers, averaging 16.3 points, and although at times, the experience has been a rude awakening, she is taking it on the chin.
“At JKL, we have been taught not to feel sorry for ourselves. But to get the job done. In the past, I always wanted to play. And although these may not be the perfect circumstances, I have embraced it and will do everything I can for my team, however tough it is,” She said.
Perhaps, it is easy to understand where this unwavering spirit that Nsubuga has, comes from. She is the daughter of former KCCA FC and Cranes midfielder, Meddie Nsubuga in the early 2000s.
While he was not your good on the eye footballer, compared to how talented a basketball player the daughter is, Nsubuga was tenacious. May be the daughter could fit for a “Tamacious” in this case, when you join Tamasha and Tenacious into one; seeing how she is the embodiment of the siege mentality at her club.
For them, it is not just a fight against opponents, but the many critics, too. In a nutshell, JKL has played its last eight games with six or seven players, but managed to win five.
There is hope that a couple more bodies may return from the schools basketball championships, which end on Thursday, May 7. If that were to happen, it should be a different ball game against the Tomahawks whom they lost to on the last day of the first round.
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