Eleven teams have been locked out of the 2010 national basketball league play-offs which begin at the Nairobi’s Nyayo National Stadium on Saturday.
Newcomers Blazers and Kenya College of Accountancy-University, who were taking part in the Premier League for the first time, failed to make the top eight teams that earned tickets to the play-offs.
Blazers were narrowly edged out after finishing the regular season in ninth position with 28 points. KCA-U also experienced still competition on their first attempt, finishing a distant 10th to miss out in the prestigious best-of-three series play-offs.
Regular winners
Bottom-placed Lomboritz (22) and University of Nairobi’s Terrorists (25), who are regular campaigners, not only failed to sail into the play-offs but also said good bye to the next year’s Premier League.
Champions KCB Lions led the eight teams to qualify for the play-offs after emerging the regular-season winners with 41 points. Others are: Co-op Bank (40), Posta (39), KPA (38), International Christian Centre (33), Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (32), Tigers of the USIU-A (32) and eighth-placed Strathmore University (31). Kenya Polytechnic and Predators were the only two women’s teams which were bundled out of the eight-team play-offs.
The duo finished in distant last and second last positions due to their mediocre performance in the 10-team championship.
Grabbed top spot
The students, who had no experience were bottom on 19 points while Predators, a team comprising former international failed to cope with the youthful teams only managing the ninth position with 20 points.
Two teams of the four that had earned promotion to the men’s Division One league this year from the Nairobi provincial league, were eliminated from the play-offs. Emyba failed to be among the top eight qualifiers to advance after finishing bottom with 21 points.
Friends of Basketball were also shown the door with 24 points after finishing 12th in the 13-team competition. Other teams which failed to qualify are; African Nazarene University (27), Kenya Polytechnic (28) and Nairobi Pentecostal Church (30).
Ulinzi Warriors will lead the eight-team pack in the lower competition play-offs having grabbed the top spot with unbeaten record. The soldiers, who are headed for a return to the top league, finished top.