March 16, 2024

Diarra believes better defense can help Cape Town recover from 0-2

Right after Cape Town Tigers’ second straight loss in the Kalahari Conference, head coach Flosh Ngwenya apologized for his team’s under-performance.

The Tigers are 0-2 ahead of the clash against Petro de Luanda on Saturday at SunBet Arena in Pretoria, and, to keep their Basketball Africa League (BAL) Playoffs aspirations alive, Ngwenya’s men must win their first game of the season.

But taking on Petro de Luanda, a team the hosts of Kalahari Conference lost to (100-88) early in the season, comes as another uphill task to face.

PRETORIA, TSHWANE - MARCH 10: Nkosinathi Sandile Sibanyoni #14 of the Cape Town Tigers boxes out Aboubakar Pedro Gakou #15 of Petroleos De Luanda during the Kalahari Conference Group play for the 2024 Basketball Africa League season on March 10, 2024 at SunBet Arena in Pretoria, Tshwane. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Kevin Couliau/NBAE via Getty Images)

Can the Tigers bounce back in the Conference?

If the Tigers are to overcome Petro de Luanda and relaunch their BAL Season 4 campaign to new heights, the South African champions desperately must make deep adjustments.

In the words of Cape Town Tigers guard Cartier Diarra, a better defensive attitude can be a game-changer.

“We had every game so far in our hands,” Diarra said before adding: “It came down to defense, that’s what we need to do, because if we are not scoring and they are not scoring, it’s an even match-up. The issue right now is just playing better defense. It’s about effort and heart.”

The Tigers averaged 73 points per game in the first two games against FUS Rabat and Petro de Luanda while allowing an average of 92 points.

Petro de Luanda, on the other hand, averaged 87 points in their first three games.

Despite the Tigers’ scoring deficit, Diarra notes: “I don’t think it’s a scoring problem. We just got to run plays fully; execute our plays to the end, and play defense.”

Petro de Luanda beat FUS Rabat in their second meeting of the conference, and will look to improve to 3-1.

“We are still fighting for the BAL title,” said Petro de Luanda head coach Jose Neto, who is the longest serving coach in the league.

Overall, it will be the fourth encounter between Petro de Luanda and Cape Town Tigers in the BAL with the Angolan side holding a 3-0 head-to-head advantage, dating back to the BAL Season 2.

PRETORIA, TSHWANE - MARCH 10: Overall look at the arena during the Kalahari Conference Group play for the 2024 Basketball Africa League season on March 10, 2024 at SunBet Arena in Pretoria, Tshwane. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Kevin Couliau/NBAE via Getty Images)

Reflecting on the Tigers’ campaign so far, Ngwenya admitted that his team could have been in a better position with two games into the Kalahari Conference.

Ngwenya said: “I just want to apologize to the fans, to South Africa in general as well. People paid their money and took their time to come and watch us play. We didn’t do justice to all those people.”

Breaking down his team’s 84-58 defeat against FUS Rabat, Ngwenya added: “I don’t think it’s much of giving up. It’s just the fact that Rabat went onto the third, fourth, fifth and sixth gear and we still stuck on gear number two.”

A second straight defeat against Petro de Luanda (third straight overall) would leave Cape Town Tigers in a difficult position in the conference, but a win would probably come as a major boost for the remainder of their regular season campaign.