Bisons hoopster to suit up for Uganda

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This article was published 28/06/2021 (1572 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last week, Keiran Zziwa left home to play with players and coaches he’s never met before and for a country he’s only visited once as a child.

Welcome to international basketball in the 21st century.

Zziwa, a 6-0 guard with the University of Manitoba Bisons, has been chosen to represent Uganda in qualifying action for AfroBasket, the continental championship of Africa.

The team will gather in Salé, Morocco this week for a 10-day training camp.

“That’s what’s really crazy,” said the 23-year-old Winnipegger. “I haven’t met any of these guys, so it’s going to be the first time meeting and introducing myself to all of them.

“(I’ve) talked to the coach now a couple of times. I’ve called to talk with one player who used to play with my old (U of M) teammate Rashawn (Browne), but other than that I haven’t met these guys face to face.”

Zziwa was originally recruited by Ugandan team reps via Twitter more than a year ago and will finally suit up in a qualifying game against the host Moroccans July 8.

If the Ugandans lose, they will face Cape Verde on July 15 for the right to play at AfroBasket 2021 in Rwanda later this summer.

Zziwa does not speak Swahili, one of Uganda’s national languages, but he is eligible to play for Uganda because his father is originally from that country.

He is planning to return to the U of M this fall for his fifth and final year of eligibility but he sees basketball in his future beyond school. The trip to Africa fits nicely with those plans as a way to showcase his talents.

“It’s a life experience for sure,” said Zziwa, a criminology major. “Just being able to travel, see the world, especially because we’re in COVID right now, I haven’t really traveled in the last year or two. So being able to just get out the country and see new things is exciting, but also build my resume for my future in basketball…

“There’s obviously a little bit of nerves that comes with it just being in a place you’ve never been, with people you’ve never met — that type of thing. But right from the talks that I have had with the coach and people on the team, it’s pretty reassuring about what’s to come and what’s gonna happen.”

Bisons head coach Kirby Schepp said Zziwa’s progress from unheralded high school player out of Glenlawn Collegiate to U Sports standout and now pro prospect has been gratifying.

“He wasn’t one of the most highly recruited guys in the province and he didn’t play right away out of high school,” said Schepp, who also coached Canada’s U17 men’s team last year.

“He was this kid whose skill set wasn’t quite ready but he was a fantastic athlete, lightning fast and and his game really came along to the point where certainly last year he was one of our main guys.”

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14