Red-Hot Blazers Halt Jaguars’ Win Streak

A.A Johnson

Sr. Writer April 5, 2025 – 12:44 AM EAT

Were Mark 📸

After beating the NBL defending champs, the JT Jaguars got a rare taste of what it’s like to be on the other end of a convincing win, this time against a Nam Blazers team that has now won four straight.

“Honestly, defense in our second half fell short,” Were Mark agreed when asked about that oft-challenging point. “We fell so short on defense, especially at the center. We missed a good number of shots today, and that cost us a lot in this game,” he added. “I think on offense we played a good game, especially in the first half, pushing every time the Blazers went upfront,” added Mark, who scored a team-high 21 points.

The Jaguars had plenty of good looks in their first half trying to manage the Blazers, but their shots weren’t falling, as they hit just 27.9 percent of their 3-point attempts.

Clearly, It was another bad night for our big men at the center. Both Chuma and Sifuma combined for only 10 points the entire game. Aaron made 9 points, followed by Victor Bwana, who had 7 points but was very impressive on the defensive end with 2 blocks. By far, Mark was the only one balling with a 21-point high, and definitely there was no way we could have won this game. “We got less points from the biggies, and obviously that is a bad sign to start with.”

He also noted how their 16 turnovers were an issue as well.

On the other side, the Blazers were red-hot. They shot 44 percent from the field, including 33 percent from long range. And despite the fact that they had a higher turnover rate (18), we only made 13 points off them.

“They did a good job with their ball pressure and physicality, so credit to them,” Kasasa said of the Blazers’ performance. “They’re playing well right now, and they played better than us tonight.”

At halftime, the JT Jaguars held their ground, trailing the Namuwongo Blazers by just two points, 34–32. A late second-quarter 9–0 run by Namuwongo gave them breathing space, but Chuma and Victor responded with a 7–0 run of their own, trimming the deficit back to four (43–39). As we went to the line to add our 40th point, Namuwongo closed the third quarter on an 11–0 run that completely shifted the tone of the game, extending their lead to 54–40.

Two key issues defined the final period:

1. A 60% Defensive Drop-Off

The Blazers attacked the paint with ease as the Jaguars’ defense crumbled. Lanes were wide open, and help defense was virtually non-existent. Without proper interior resistance, Namuwongo sliced through possession after possession.

2. Absence of the Big Men

With Peter and Sifuma sidelined for understandable reasons, the Jaguars lacked size and presence under the rim. Elijah, Aaron and Duncan had to battle Namuwongo’s Biggies and while they fought hard, the mismatch in size and strength was evident. This had ripple effects on rebounding, rim protection, and offensive structure. The Blazers recognized the mismatch and hunted it relentlessly, turning the fourth quarter into a 29-point slaughter.

In the end, Namuwongo pulled away with a strong, coordinated finish. Paul Odong made a brief but notable appearance, knocking down a three-pointer before exiting, adding to the night’s frustration.

But still, even with the poor performance from the team, Were Mark had 21 points, which was the highest in the game. We also got a wake-up call to push us further and win the rest of the games. “What matters right now is the next game—how we come back and make this right,” said Mark.

Tomorrow, we take on the JKL Dolphins.