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Season 58: South Africa U21 NT

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From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.1
Date: 08/08/2022 19:40:39
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III.10
Overall Posts Rated:
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BubblesExploded
Hello everyone! Coming off of the best six-season run in South Africa U21 history during seasons 52-57 (Two Golds and a Silver at Continentals), we are looking to keep the momentum going! I will be posting game recaps in this thread for all managers to follow the team as well as any big events with the South African U21 NT.

Let's have a great season!

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.2 in reply to 316012.1
Date: 08/08/2022 19:57:04
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Overall Posts Rated:
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Second Team:
BubblesExploded
The Overtime Thriller Against Al Maghrib

To start off the Continental Tournament, we faced off with one of the best teams in Africa this season, Al Maghrib! Their roster has three players with 29k+ salaries, all higher than our best player. Coming into the game our only chance was to play small-ball and to try to outscore them... and outscore them we did.

We were in front for much of the game, led by Ngolinga Tshwete's 35 points, but got off to a rough start in the 4th quarter, falling behind by as many as 6 points. The team rallied back though and Al Maghrib could not stop us without fouling. The team shot a whopping 30-41 (73.2%) from the FT line and we sent the game to overtime at 97-97.

In overtime it was Khaya Tshwete and Lulu Mwatiwa who really shined. K. Tsh hit clutch buckets down the stretch and Lulu was grabbing rebounds like a madman. Mwatiwa finished the game with 12 points and 14 rebounds and Khaya Tshwete added 13 points in just 11 minutes off of the bench. After a hard fought battle, we came away with a 116-110 Victory!

Next up on our schedule is Senegal who will be hungry for a win after a close loss today against Tounes!

Last edited by E.B.W. at 08/08/2022 19:58:54

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: Sandy

This Post:
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316012.3 in reply to 316012.2
Date: 08/17/2022 05:51:26
Durban AllStars
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Overall Posts Rated:
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A big win over Morocco, followed by a somewhat frustrating loss to Senegal.
What are your thoughts about the current roster ?

Last edited by Sandy at 08/17/2022 05:55:11

From: E.B.W.

This Post:
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316012.4 in reply to 316012.3
Date: 08/17/2022 10:40:06
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III.10
Overall Posts Rated:
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Second Team:
BubblesExploded
Current roster lacks defense at a lot of positions but the offense is in a great place. The training plan in place for most of our players is set up nicely to balance this out in the future.

Senegal loss was definitely frustrating but I’m not sure if it was preventable. We got very unlucky as their center had 5 fouls at half time and simply never picked up his 6th foul. If he does at any point, we almost certainly win. Our GS update was also not the best with a couple key players in 7 GS or lower and A Warrior and I were talking after the game and he and I concluded that there wasn’t a lot that we would change about the setup even in hindsight.

We are still in a great spot at 1-1, the win and loss just came in the opposite games than I was expecting. Thanks for your support!

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: E.B.W.

This Post:
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316012.5 in reply to 316012.2
Date: 08/26/2022 16:32:22
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Second Team:
BubblesExploded
South Africa Bounces Back as Ndaba Dominates

Following South Africa's disappointing close loss to Senegal, we were looking at a must-win game against Nigeria. They were a top heavy team with some very nice talent, however not much depth. Coming off of two-straight forfeits, this was the first game that Nigeria decided to play.

We came out firing on all cylinders, annihilating Nigeria 35-15 in the first quarter. While that was the most dominant quarter of the game for us, we played well for the majority of the game. Nbomani Ndaba led the way with 29 points on 14/22 shooting. He was a game high +24 and also added 3 blocks on the defensive end.

N. Tshwete also scored 26 points and C. Molefi was having a remarkable game, shooting 8/11 before he was injured. South Africa relaxed a bit at the end of the game but still came away with a 124-111 Victory!

Next game is just a few days away when we face off with Ghana who enters this game at 1-2.

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.6 in reply to 316012.5
Date: 08/29/2022 21:30:20
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Ncube Controls the Game, South Africa Edges Past Ghana

Entering the game against Ghana, the plan was simple. Slow down their bigs as much as possible and take advantage of their guards and wings. We successfully did one of those two things at least. In a closer game than anticipated, our offense fought through Ghana's 3-2 zone and shot a respectable 9/25 (36%) from beyond the arc. As for every other aspect of the game, it was the Lazarus Ncube show.

Ncube scored 31 points on 12/21 shooting and added 6 assists, 5 rebounds, and 5 blocks. Kabo Kolane was also a spark plug off of the bench, scoring 13 points in 13 minutes, including shooting 3/3 from beyond the arc and 5/6 from the field.

Ghana's center did cause problems for our South African bigs, as he shot 12/14 from the field and scored 29 points, but our defense held up well against all of their other starters. In a back and forth game, Ghana led with just over 2 minutes left in the game, but Ncube and the Tshwete brothers were able to close out the 4th, resulting in a 112-106 Victory!

Up next, we have a game against 1-3 Misr, who should not be overlooked!

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: Sandy

This Post:
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316012.7 in reply to 316012.6
Date: 08/31/2022 19:30:29
Durban AllStars
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Overall Posts Rated:
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Know that I read each summary, even if I do not post each time. Thanks. :)

From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.8 in reply to 316012.7
Date: 09/08/2022 14:32:32
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South Africa Crushes Misr in Amazing Team Performance

Despite playing this game with more effort, Misr was unable to hang with the depth of our team. The South African U21 team was firing on all cylinders as we scored the 2nd most points of the season this game as well shut down the Egyptians offense. We allowed only 80 points forcing Misr to shoot just 32.4% from the field and 19.0% from three-point range. This was the first game in which we held an opponent to double-digit points.

As for our offense, Ndaba led the way once again, scoring 27 points on 12/20 shooting. While he was the high scorer for the game, it is important to note that this was a true team effort. Our depth showed to be as strong as ever and the team ended with game with 6 double-digit scorers: Ndaba, Molefi, Mwatiwa, Ncube, N. Tshwete, and Mwakangale. We cruised our way to an impressive win that was never close and closed out a 122-80 victory!

This upcoming Monday we have an important game as the #2 seed and #3 seed face off with each other. This team: Al Jazair.

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.9 in reply to 316012.8
Date: 09/14/2022 22:05:35
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Second Team:
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South Africa Continues to Fire on all Cylinders as They Topple Al Jazair

As this season has progressed, the U21 team has clearly found their stride, entering this game against Al Jazair on a three-game winning streak. This was also the best collective team performance to date. With all five starters scoring double-digit points, and combining for 26 rebounds and 21 assists, the entire unit stuffed the stat sheet. This was also the first game in which every starter for South Africa posted a 12.0+ rating.

For the 2nd straight game, South Africa also held our opponent under 100 points. The defense is clearly improving as the team boasted their first 8 (Strong) OD rating of the season. M Giqwa and N Tshwete lead the offense with 20 and 25 points respectfully as the backcourt bullied their way to a 125-98 victory!

Next up we have Tounes, who on paper looks to have just a decent group of players, but they will be playing in front of their home crowd, so it could be a difficult matchup.

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)
From: Sandy

This Post:
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316012.10 in reply to 316012.9
Date: 09/17/2022 17:39:55
Durban AllStars
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Overall Posts Rated:
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Good job, keep it up! :)

From: E.B.W.
This Post:
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316012.11 in reply to 316012.9
Date: 09/22/2022 22:56:24
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Second Team:
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South Africa Ends the First Round on a High Note

Facing off with the host nation team, Tounes, we had a solid, but unremarkable performance. What's another word for that...? Respectable. In this contest, our team performance was balanced across the board, recording a 7 (respectable) team rating in 5/6 categories. Our balanced approach took the upper hand over the Tounes team who were very focused on their inside attack and defense.

M Giqwa led the way with 30 points on 11/16 shooting. N Tshwete also exploded for 19 points in 15 minutes off of the bench. Overall the South African bench annihilated Tounes' backup unit, resulting in a 104-84 Victory!

We enter the 2nd round as the #1 overall seed, thanks to the Points For tiebreaker. Up first, we will face off against our arch nemesis, Senegal. The last time we played, Senegal took us by surprise and handed us our only loss this season. This time around, we will be on our A+ game to even the score!

Bubbles BuzzerBeater Official YouTube Channel:(https://www.youtube.com/@BubblesBuzzerBeater)