Africa-Press – South-Africa. Made By Ball (MBB) head coach Sam Vincent says he saw glimpses of his former Boston Celtics teammate and Hall of Famer Larry Bird in Pieter Prinsloo’s match-winning performance against Nairobi City Thunder in the Basketball Africa League in Kigali on Tuesday.
The Pretoria-born Prinsloo had 30 points and 11 rebounds, while Robinson Odoch-Opong knocked down a three-pointer at the death to help MBB to a 75-74 win in the Nile Conference.
“There were moments when I was having fond NBA flashbacks, because Pieter today [Tuesday], he reminded me of Larry,” Vincent said.
“No disrespect to Larry but some of the shots [Prinsloo] hit on the step-back threes and the low post moves, he was sensational.”
Vincent also praised Teafale Lenard Jnr, who scored 20 points, saying he reminded him of another teammate in former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen.
Pippen was a crucial member of the Bulls’ championship-winning team that featured players such as Michael Jordan, Steve Kerr and Dennis Rodman and dominated the NBA in the 1990s.
“I also had some flashbacks with Teafale and a couple of those monstrous dunks that he had reminded me of Scottie,” Vincent said.
He said the adjustment he made by bringing 2.13m tall David Craig into the starting five in place of Nkosi Sibanyoni brought stability in their defence.
The win was the Johannesburg-based team’s first in the BAL after losing two games at the weekend.
“Getting this win is almost like a full circle,” Vincent said. “I first came to South Africa in 1999 and got involved with basketball.
“From coaching in South Africa, I got to the NBA and had a chance to coach.
“Having a chance 25 years later to come back and get this win, which is so important for what we’re trying to do to get more exposure and promote basketball in South Africa, is important.
“So it’s exciting, but more importantly, we have to keep our heads down and keep on working, and that’s what we’re going to do in the next few games.”
The win was influential in boosting MBB’s chances for the playoffs in Pretoria.
The South African team have to win one game with a superior points difference or two games, depending on how other matches play out in the conference, to comfortably claim the last wild card spot.
That berth is now occupied by FUS Rabat of Morocco, who have won two games but have a -19 points difference.
MBB will next play Rwanda’s Armée Patriotique at the same venue on Thursday.
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