DAR ES SALAAM: PAZI basketball team is in intensive preparation for the Elite 16 qualifying round of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) season four.
The Eastern Zone tournament is scheduled to tip off from 21 to 26 November this year in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Pazi Assistant Coach, Mohamed Mbwana, stated that preparations are in top gear for the event.
However, the team is facing a tough battle ahead of them in the Eastern Zone Group A showdown, which also consists of host Cape Town Tigers, NBA Academy Africa, and Burundian’s Dynamo, who qualified through the wild card.
Last month, Pazi defeated Burundian’s Dynamo 71-62 in the final game to win with a bang the Group C first-round qualifying title at the IST Masaki indoor stadium, Dar es Salaam.
Tanzania giants qualified for the Elite 16 round towards the BAL 2024 Finals without conceding a match and became the first local team to lead the qualified group.
Pazi has beaten third-placed Kenya Port Authority (KPA) and Elan Cotton of Benin who finished at the bottom.
Mbwana stressed that players under the head coach Henry Mwinuka are in intensive training six days a week (Monday to Saturday), which includes physical exercises at the beach area, in the gym, and on the field.
Due to the ongoing rain, the team opted for gym exercises instead of the morning beach training. In the evening, they have field technical training.
All the players are in good health, and the team is looking forward to the tough battle in South Africa.
Mbwana added that the team that won last month’s event did a great job. However, they still need to strengthen some areas, so they hope to add a few players among those who undergo training with them.
The Eastern Zone also has Group B, which involves the teams of CFV-Beira of Mozambique, City Oilers of Uganda, and Cospin of Madagascar.
Fifteen teams from the East and West Divisions were divided into four groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group will advance to the Semi-Finals. The winners of the Semi-Finals and Third-Place games will qualify for the fourth edition of the BAL.
