The second phase of the Nigeria Basketball Premier League, NBPL, the Atlantic Conference, dunked off inside the Indoor multipurpose gymnasium sports hall of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium today, as.elite basketball championship

continues to heightened.

The championship which is organized by the Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF,, will run through the 30th June, is expected to produced the top four teams that will compete for the ultimate prize in the Super 8 championship in a  yet to be decided venue.

This second phase which follows after the successful conclusion of the first phase began earlier in May across multiple national centres, as the competition serves as a n avenue to discover, nurture and develop the next generation of players that can represent country in any major tournament.

With eight participating teams which include Raptors (Lagos), defending champion.s of the NBPL, Maktown flyers (Benue), Athletic for Peace (Rivers), three -time league winner, Comets (Ogun), 2018 NBPL champions, Rivers Hoopers (Port Harcourt), Coal City Blazers (Enugu), 2024 runners up,Hoop and Read (Lagos) and Edo beads (Edo),  the tournament promises to live up to its billing.

According to the Organizers, it has introduced a number of major structural changes and disciplinary measures to professionalize the sport and improve local talent development.

It also expanded the Men’s Premier League to feature 20 participating teams from the previous 16, thereby spreading the competition across the Savannah and Atlantic Conferences.

Meanwhile, the results of day one action, saw Coal City Blazers working extra hard in the final quarter to defeat Raptors (64-61), Edo beads were walkover by defending champions, Markdown flyer.

Another high intensity encounter which held fans, sports enthusiasts and passerby spell bound, was Lagos based  Hoops and Read edging pass Athletic for Peace by 3 points (66-63) and an experienced Rivers Hoopers outclassed Comet by 83-55