Over 18 teams battle in Elite Schools’ Cup basketball competition

Over 18 secondary schools in Lagos State are battling for honours in the 2019 Elite School’s Cup Competition, which kicked off on Saturday at the basketball courts of Dodan Barracks.
 
The Elite Schools’ Cup is a competition that will feature basketball, athletics and football, with schools drawn into four different zones. These are Epe, Lekki, Oshodi and Yaba.
 
The participating schools in both male and female categories, include, St Greg’s, Aunty Ayo, Kings College, Queens College, White Sand, Dansol College, Dowen and David Hall College, among others.
 
Speaking at the opening ceremony that witnessed colourful marches and excited faces that filled the basketball court, the Technical Head of the Basketball Committee, Ibrahim Bukar Biu, expressed readiness to host the game without any technical hitch, noting that talents discovered at the end of the competition would be exposed to the world.

“Right now we have four zones on ground – we have the Lekki, Epe, Yaba and Oshodi zones. The referees, table officials, everybody is set for the goal,” he said.
 
The Chief Executive Officer of Elite School’s Cup, Shokoya Olayinka urged parents, government, and private stakeholders to partner with the organisers of the competition to help the children cope with their academics and sports, and stay away from social vices.

“In sports, money for referees and other logistics is very important. One of the things we want to do now is that, it is not going to end as a competition… we will like to select the best out of each competition – the football, athletics, and basketball and then give them both national and international exposure,” he added.
 
Meanwhile, the Head Coach of David Hall College Basketball team, Julius Samson, who led his team to victory at the last edition, has called on his players to prepare and work hard to defend the title they won last year.

“After last year’s finals, we started making adequate preparation for the next edition, so we are actually ready to defend our title,” he said.Also, the Captain of David Hall College Basketball team, Osaretin Uhunmwangho said he was optimistic that his side was mentally ready to conquer in this year’s edition.

“I am very prepared… I have worked hard to reach this level. We take our time, practice hard, work on our plays, and look at our mistakes, so that I will be able to push my team as a captain.”The Elite Schools’ Cup competition will end on November 8, 2019.