BREAKING NEWS, Sports
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IN its bid at bringing a new lease of life for university sports, the Nigeria University Games, NUGA, Basketball has concluded a sponsorship arrangement with the Ahmadu Musa Kida, AMK, Foundation to begin an annual three-aside basketball tournament from 2017.
This was disclosed to newsmen in Kaduna on Monday, January 30, by Adamu Ahmed, chairman, the NUGA Basketball, who sees the sponsorship as the most formidable breakthrough for university basketball and the NUGA games format, expressing optimism that it would bring new lease of life in university sports.
Ahmed disclosed that a total of 75 universities would be expected to participate in the maiden edition in 2017 making it the largest gathering of basketball teams in Nigeria, scheduled in two categories of men and women.
“The maiden edition is slated to hold through two qualifying rounds at the University of Lagos, UNILAG, from February 16 to 19 and the Ahmadu Bello University from February 23 to 25, while the final is billed for Abuja from March 2 to 4, where the teams that qualify would battle for honours.
“A total of 43 teams are expected to compete at the UNILAG centre and 32 at the ABU centre.
“Five men and five women teams are to qualify from each centre to the final round of 10 men and 10 women teams at Abuja,” he said.
Ahmed said further that the AMK-NUGA three-aside tournament would serve a step towards instituting single sport annual tournaments to keep university students active year round.
“The AMK Foundation says it is proud to provide support for this transition, with its president having also suffered from the inadequacies of the bi annual NUGA format while playing active basketball at the ABU.
“NUGA has historically maintained a bi-annual all comers games which has been criticised for limiting player development within the university system,” he said.
The AMK Foundation is a non-profit charity organisation with interest in youths empowerment through sports. Musa Ahmadu Kida, president of the Foundation is a former senior national basketball player and Board member of the Nigeria Basketball Federation. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the ABU Basketball Foundation.
It would be recalled that the AMK Foundation has for two years running been the sole sponsor of the West Africa three-aside basketball tournament.
The foundation has also been the sponsor of the South-South three-aside basketball championship for two years, and last year, the IDP three aside classics at Maiduguri.
The NUGA Basketball chairman said that the annual tournament would be used to select Nigeria’s team to the Global University Three-Aside tournament each year.
Ahmed is one time national basketball team player and chairman, Technical Committee of the Nigeria Basketball Federation.
Added attractions at the AMK NUGA three-aside tournament are three points shooting and dunking competitions.
— Jan 30, 2017 @ 15:32 GMT
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