This archive report was first published on 30 September 2019.
On September 30, 2019, a thrilling match took place at the weekend, where Thunder defeated defending champions Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) 82-68, dislodging Ulinzi Warriors from the top of the Kenya Basketball Federation men's Premier League standings.
Kenya Morans captain Griffin Ligare was on fire, sinking 26 points as last year's semi-finalists completed a double against the dockers, who they had beaten during the first leg staged in Mombasa.
Thunder's coach, Sadat Gaya, attributed their victory to a near-perfect game plan, saying, “Victory was very crucial to us because we want to top standings at the end of the regular season. Going into the match each one of us had committed to giving their best and I’m glad we all turned up and made every minute of the match count because we had a good strategy. It worked wonders and made it easy for us to achieve our objective.”
Despite the disappointing outcome, KPA tactician Sammy Kiki praised his charges, saying they played a good game, but Thunder were the better side.
Thunder's dominance was evident, as they took a commanding 43-27 lead by halftime. KPA would regain their footing in the second half to score 41 points against Thunder's 39, but the 16 points first half advantage destroyed their hopes of a top two finish.
Meanwhile, in the women's Premier League, University of Nairobi (UON) Dynamites piled more misery on their wounded hosts Western Delight at the Kakamega Police Grounds, with Valarie Kemunto starring for Dynamites with 16 points.
