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South Sudanese center Moses Maker has officially left National Basketball League (NBL) side City Oilers, the club has confirmed.

The reigning NBL champions announced his departure on Tuesday, January 14, via their official online platforms.

“For all that you’ve brought to this team—your hard work, dedication, and spirit will never be forgotten. Wishing you nothing but success in your next chapter,” the club’s statement read.

Maker has been a key player in City Oilers’ last three consecutive league titles.

During the 2024 campaign, he averaged 10 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, helping the team secure its 10th league championship.

As City Oilers prepare for the 2025 season, the club is expected to make adjustments to its roster in pursuit of an 11th league title.

National Basketball League

Wednesday, July 19, 2023

Women

Men

City Oilers collected their 16th straight win after beating Rezlife Saints 84-41 in the National Basketball League at the Lugogo Arena on Wednesday.

Mandy Juruni’s troops are a house on fire and it seems they are not planning to run out of flames. The record champions are still unbeaten and are playing 16 games.

Jimmy Enabu scored a game-high of 14 points before Maker Mer Roor and Ben Komakech scored 13 and 10 points respectively hence sealing off the victory.

On the other hand, Rezlife suffered their fifth straight loss in the second round meaning they have not won a game since the season resumed.

They had no one with a double figure on the scoreboard, Micheal Otieno scoring a team-high of nine points. Claude Lubega and Benjamin Kawuni added six and five respectively.

Just like expected, the Oilers started on the front foot taking charge of the first quarter 17-9. At halftime, the Saints were trailing by a sum of 19 points (35-16).

In the second half, the Saints pulled up their stocking to score a double in the third quarter but still were on the receiving side by 10 (24-14).

At full-time, Daniel Juuko’s troops were trailing by 43 points in the one-sided game yet the Oilers hardly put in a shift to register this victory.

City Oilers are fifth on the 12-teamed log while Rezlife lie at the bottom of the log.

In the next fixtures, Rezlife take on Ndejje University while City Oilers’ duel against KIU will not be played since the games happening that weekend were postponed due to Afrobasket.

National Basketball League

Saturday, June 24, 2023

Women

Men

Titus Lual Odeke’s double-double inspired City Oilers past the Kampala Rockets to seal off the 13th straight win in the National Basketball League.

City Oilers registered a 58-45 win against the league newbies at KIU on Saturday evening extending their season record to 13-0.

Lual, who also doubled as the player of the game, scored 14 points, picked 13 rebounds and made two assists.

Youngster Allawi Ssenkuge also hit a double-figure scoring with a season-high of 14 points and four rebounds with limited time on the court.

However much the two sides differed in talent and quality, both sides played a slow and less enthusiastic game hence yielding a small score, unlike the ladies’ games that had been played earlier.

At half-time, City Oilers hhad a 37-28 lead.

After recess, the two sides returned even colder playing to a very low-scoring quarter where Kampala Rockets scored only six points while the Oilers managed 12.

The Rockets won the last quarter 11-9 but it was too little too late as the eight-time champions had already made the damage.

The victory keeps Mandy Juruni’s troops glued on the summit of the log.

In their next fixtures, City Oilers play KCCA Panthers while Kampala Rockets take on UPDF Tomahawks.

Results | Friday, June 17, 2023

City Oilers continued their league dominance with yet another well-deserved victory against rivals Namuwongo Blazers.

The defending champions managed to clinch against Nam Blazers in a 72-52 win as the National Basketball League second round kicked off at Lugogo Arena on Friday night.

The win meant that Mandy Jurini’s charges had completed a double against Escodata Stephen Nyeko’s troops since the first leg ended 57-51 in favour of City Oilers.

Huge crowds turned up for the duel underlining that now this is the biggest game of basketball within the borders.

Both sides kicked off with the much-required energy and seal but equally missed their first shots on either flank.

City Oilers later trailed by four points earlier but went on to take home the bragging rights in the first quarter on 23-14 having James Okello’s thrilling handle as the highlight.

To prove that both sides struggled to convert, just like it was in the first quarter they played two minutes into the second quarter without any shot being converted.

However, Ivan Muhwezi converted a three-point jump shot before Chris Basheke Omanye responded to ignite the energetic crowds that kept rallying their sides.

At half-time, the scoreboard read 27-41 and it was City Oilers with a commanding lead.

After the long break, both sides came back with limited steam as they played to 10-12 hence keeping the Oilers in the driving seat before the fourth quarter ended 52-72.

Despite a poor evening on the line, Jimmy Enabu managed to score a game-high of 17 points.

The It Oilers that managed double digits for points were Fayed Bbaale (11) while James Okello, Tonny Drileba and Ivan Muhwezi all scored 10.

Only Paul Odong and Micheal Makiadi scored double digits gathering 14 and 12 points respectively.

It was a poor evening for Nam Blazers’ new signing Julius Trumane who hardly added a point on the scoreboard for his side.

It was the 12th win in 12 games for the Oilers while it was the fourth loss for the Blazers who have only won eight of their 12 outings.

Sunday, May 28

Women

City Oilers easily passed by newbies Kampala Rockets to seal off the National Basketball League with a perfect run.

In a game played at YMCA, City Oilers registered a 94-64 well-deserved win against Kampala Rockets on Sunday evening.

It was the 11th win in 11 games for the league’s record champion while it was the eighth loss for the newcomer who has won only thrice from the 11 outings.

The Oilers were playing for the first time since their early elimination from BAL and their class was written all over the walls.

The first quarter provided a close contest as the Oilers edged the Rockets 20-17.

In the second quarter, it was the same story as the Oilers put in a shift to keep ahead of the Rockets with only a margin of nine points (43-34) by halftime.

After a long break, Mande Juruni’s troops finally found their spark and rhythm commanding a (31-18) run widening the gap to 22 points.

In the fourth quarter, Oilers continued with their dominance to earn a 20-16 run hence climaxing the first round on a high with a 94-68 victory.

On the scoreboard, Jimmy Enabu, Luak Ruai and Ivan Muhwazi carded 14 points.

While Ceasar Kizito and Titus Lual added 13 and 12 to ensure the assignment is sealed.

On the other hand, Gideon Kasasa scored the game’s highest with 23 points and 10 rebounds as Emmanuel Okumu added 17 points for the Rockets.

City Oilers head coach Mandy Juruni says it was a good experience playing at the Basketball Africa League that was held in Cairo, Egypt.

Despite not making it to the playoff in Kigali, City Oilers picked several lessons going forward and for the tournaments to come.

The Ugandan side’s journey came to an end after failing to go past South Africa’s Cape Town Tigers in an 80-70 loss.

“It was a good experience,” Juruni said shortly after the end of the game before adding; “We had some good games, we had some great moments but had some bad moments as well.”

“But competitions are like that. This is a high competition in terms of clubs’ basketball in Africa, so for us to here and compete against the best on the continent is an honour,” he stressed.

The Oilers needed a win to squeeze in the last four who will play the BAL playoffs later on but the dream was shunned.

“We were a bit flat on defence. I do not think we did a good job of making consistent stops. They shot the ball, they drove the ball and we did not have the firepower in us.”

“Our efficiency was not good as on Friday and I think the other team also did a good job trying to stop our two scorers. Maybe the other guys should have come in to give us the lift.”

Germaine Roebuck Jr’s injury was a great blow to Juruni’s troops who greatly missed his drive. The burden was left to Falando Jones who managed to score 27 points while James Justice Jr had a bad day scoring only nine.

The oilers finished the group with only one win from five games. Their only win came against CFV de Beira in the second-last game of the fixture.

“We have learnt a lot and we are happy to be here to represent our club and country,” he concluded.

Saturday, May 6

City Oilers suffered a big blow by exiting of Basketball Africa League after falling to Cape Town Tigers in an 80-70 loss on Saturday evening.

The Ugandan side played this game having it at the back of their mind that it was their ticket to Kigali if they win but also a ticket back to Kampala if they lose.

The South African side won the first quarter after edging City Oilers by three points 20-17.

But Mandy Juruni’s side won the second quarter 20-17 and the two sides went in the long break levelled at 37-37 to set the perfect stage for a thrilling duel.

After recess, it was end-to-end action as both sides shared possession but with less than two minutes in the third quarter. Samkelo Cele converted three successive shots to create a six-point lead.

Titus Odeke responded with a 3-point jump shot to reduce the deficit but Parby Musongela recreated the seven-point lead at the end of the quarter.

The fourth block was more interesting as Fayed Bbaale put in a big three with 2.34 left on the clock but Pieter Prinslo responded with a three to extend the lead.

The final whistle was blown while City Oilers were trailing by 10 points.

Falando Jones topped the scoring chart of the Oilers with 27 points and was the only player with double figures from the home side.

It was the fourth loss for City Oilers who only managed to pick a win against Mozambique’s Ferroviato da Beira (96-75).

Fixtures | Friday May 5

City Oilers head coach Mandy Juruni has emphasized the sensitivity of their next game in the Basketball Africa League in the Nile Conference being held in Cairo, Egypt.

The Ugandan side has so far lost three games at the ongoing tournament and seeks a comeback when they face Ferroviaro Beira on Friday evening.

“We have no room to mess up,” Juruni said ahead of the clinical clash against the side from Mozambique.

“We have to do all it takes to keep ourselves alive so we understand what is ahead of us but most importantly we have to focus on the things that need to be done so that we win,” he added.

City Oilers’ most recent loss came against Guinea’s SLAC in a 96-68 loss to fall to a 0-3 record. In that game, the Oilers looked so down and mentally off.

But Juruni believes his charges are now in a better place mentally and hope for a smarter performance far from what they staged in the previous game.

“We have been preparing mentally. We have had numerous sessions with the boys, one-on-one just to try and prepare them mentally.

“We have watched the film of the last game and we highlighted a number of mistakes that are correctable. After the training and the talks we had, I feel good about the mood.

“The players also had their own meeting (as players only) so we have done everything to prepare ourselves for the game ahead.

“These are teams (Ferroviaro Beira and Cape Town Tigers ) we are very familiar with having played them in the Road to BAL to get here but this is a different stage and we are in the position where we have to win,” he concluded.

Another loss for Juruni’s troops will mean they are automatically out of the picture for a slot in the BAL playoffs that will be held in Kigali, Rwanda from May 21st to 28th.

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

City Oilers head coach Mandy Juruni was a very disappointed man after his side lost the third game of the Basketball Africa League in the Nile Conference.

Juruni highlighted the lack of effort as the reason why his troops fell to Guinea’s SLAC in a 96-68 loss to slump to a 0-3 record at the grand stage.

“We just did not compete,” Juruni said shortly after a disappointing result in a game they badly wanted to end the poor run.

“So many layups given away, so many assists gone the wrong side and it summed up how we lacked the togetherness in the game. All that contributed to the pour show and we got punished,” he added.

SLAC exhibited a high class of hunger as they started with the perfect rhythm to take a 24-13 lead after the first quarter.

Guinea’s side carried the lead to the second quarter carding a 20-12 lead ensuring they go to the long break with the scoreboard reading 44-25.

“If you come to play these games, these teams, you have to be mentally and physically ready. I thought we were not mentally and physically ready to play this game.”

“They (SLAC) scored very many points in the paint, we had 20 turnovers, and they scored 19 points off of that. They scored so many uncontested shots,” he underlined.

“We have to show how tough we are. We have two must-win games, and we believe in this team. We believe we can be a better team.”

James Justice Jr topped the scoring list with 30 points while Falando Jones added 20 but all this could not hurt SLAC.

According to Juruni, they picked several lessons from the challenge and will go back to the training ground to try and fix how to return physically and mentally better.

The Oilers tried to have the last kick of the horse but it was too late and the Ugandan Champions fell trailing to 28 points in a one-sided encounter.

They have already lost to Petro de Luanda and Al Ahly and the most recent defeat to SLAC darkened the journey to Kigali as it kicked off the exit story.

Fixtures | Tuesday, May 2

City Oilers star Jimmy Enabu has called upon teammates to do all it takes to see that they pick a victory against SLAC tomorrow.

The record eight-time National Basketball League champions have not picked a win at the Basketball Africa League after falling to Petro de Luanda and Al Ahly.

City Oilers have a chance to bring the run to an end as they take on Guinea side SLAC and Enabu believes it’s up to them to do the job.

“We need to redeem ourselves,” Enabu said shortly after the last training ahead of the important clash.

“The feeling is we lost the first two games and we need to win the next game. Getting a victory will give us the best of momentum going forward, create confidence in the camp and put us in a better place to compete and fight for a place in Kigali,” he added.

“I think we are working, we can only know how far we have gotten better. We need to share the ball more and get everyone involved on the offensive end pick each other up and we shall be good to go.”

The guard emphasised that the opponent ahead of them is a decent one but also underlined how they can go ahead to punish the Guinea side.

“They (SLAC) are a good team and also a hustle team. They play a lot of hustle defence and give many shots so I think we need to be ready to take advantage of their loopholes more so in the defence and play with more pace,” Enabu underlined.

The Oilers will have to win all their remaining games against SLAC, Cape Town, and Ferroviario da Beira if they are to progress to the playoffs that are set to be played in Kigali later this month.

“Winning a basketball game will be the best for us because it will be a source of confidence and also lighten up our way to Kigali because it’s the next level, so the game is so important to us and we shall treat it with the deserved attention it deserves,” he concluded.

The Ugandan side will be ignited by their sprinted performance in their previous game against the tournament hosts Al Ahly which saw them fight from 33 points down only to lose by only two.