Tuks women's basketball team complete a hat-trick by winning the USSA Tournament again

Good, better, best is a good way to sum up the performances of Tuks women's 3x3 basketball over the past three years at the USSA Tournament.

This week, the team achieved its hat trick as USSA champions when they defeated UJ 16-14 in the final at Wits. It is the third consecutive time that Tuks have won. It has been a good week for TuksBasketball. The men's team was involved in the USSA 3x3 final for the first time. Despite a heroic performance, they eventually lost 21-18 against UJ in the final. Last year, Tuks finished third at USSA's.

Another impressive statistic is that Tuks' women won all seven of their matches. This is the second time in three years that they have achieved this.

When Tuks' captain, Linette Ngulube, was jokingly asked if it didn't get boring to win so consistently, her answer was a resounding "no."

"Remember, we are not playing for ourselves. We are representing the University of Pretoria, which maintains a proud tradition in South African sport. So, when you play for Tuks, it is essential to strive for greatness. It means giving your all to win in every game. I think our two coaches, Thesline Davids and Thanda Kweyama, deserve a lot of credit. Through their expertise, they undoubtedly have given the women's and men's teams an advantage throughout the tournament."

Ngulube has the bragging rights of having played in all three of the finals the Tuks team has won. Tuks has played UJ each time. She treasures being captain.

"I can bring calmness to the team and get the players to refocus when we are under pressure. I am also a good communicator. It is essential to listen to one's teammates and to respect them. Being the captain does not stop for me once we leave the court. I also work hard to gain my teammates' confidence off-court because the camaraderie of the game attracted me to play basketball," explains the Information Science student who is currently doing her honours."

Ngulube is proud of the fact that Tuks scored 21 points in five of the seven games they played. 21 is the ultimate in 3x3 basketball.

According to Coach David, scoring 21 points was something the team had purposely worked towards achieving during training. And with good reason.

"Normally, a game lasts 10 minutes, but if you get to score 21 points before the time runs out, you win. So if you score 21 points in eight minutes, it means the players have two minutes longer to rest before the next game. It can be vital in a tournament like the USSA's.

"3x3 basketball is a quicker game and very tactical. Players must have the ability to make fast decisions and play with confidence. If you are indecisive, it is guaranteed that you will lose control of the ball. 3x3 basketball also requires having a short-term memory when it comes to making mistakes. You make a mistake and you forget about it."

As to the outcome of the men's final, Matthew Williams said, "Obviously we are disappointed with the result, but not disappointed with the way we performed and played. It was a close game. We are happy to improve on last year's third-place result."