PRETORIA, South Africa -- Cape Town Tigers coach Florsheim Ngwenya had harsh words for former Cleveland Cavaliers two-way player Billy Preston Jr. after their 84-58 defeat, their third loss out of three, to unbeaten FUS Rabat on Tuesday.
Preston and team CEO and owner Raphael Edwards were seen in an animated back-and-forth in the first half of the game, and Preston did not play at all in the second half. He finished the game with 5 points and 3 rebounds in 14:54.
Ngwenya said in his post-match press conference: "No, it's not fine... At any given point in time, if instructions are being barked at you or told to you, or whichever given way, and you want to go your own way... you've just checked out. There's nothing we can do about it, so we'll find somebody else to replace you."
He added: "To me, I can't say the word right here, but there's a word I could use that just explains the whole situation."
Although they showed signs of promise in the early stages of the game, the Tigers ultimately slipped into the same habits that saw them lose to Dynamo BBC on the opening night and then Petro de Luanda - particularly, their increasingly familiar lack of cohesion.
The Tigers had got off to slow starts in their previous matches against Dynamo and Petro, ultimately costing them wins. This time, they came out strong, with Samkelo Cele scoring the game's first two points.
The first quarter saw the teams trading blows in a tightly fought start in front of a smaller crowd than had turned up for the weekend fixtures. FUS Rabat took a 24-18 lead despite an initially improved showing from the Tigers.
Ayoub Nouhi continued to lead the way for FUS Rabat as they slowly pulled clear of the Tigers in the second quarter, although Cele did his best to keep the hosts in range. Rabat took a 44-34 lead into half-time.
Aliou Diarra inspired a stunning third quarter display from Rabat and they extended their lead to 71-44.
The way back for the Tigers from there was too long. Although Cele finished with 22 and Cartier Diarra with 11, it was overall a disappointing night for the Tigers, who were undone by a more unified team. Diarra finished with 21 points and Nouhi with 15.