At the West African University Games (WAUG) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in 1989, Team Captain James Verdier introduces members of the University of Liberia Men's Basketball Team. They went on to win the Bronze Medal.. This team featured many stars including Smith Jallah, Aaron Davis Ishmael Jones, James Verdier (Captain), Archiemore Frederick, Emmett Watson, Joseph Robertson, Anthony Fannoh, Cephas Acolatse, Anthony McIntosh, J. Bernard Blamo, and Eric Daniels. These boys were the pride of a grateful nation.
Although this team was coached by the Late Legendary Head Coach Alexander Kojo Anderson, aka Psycho, he did not make the trip. Another basketball great, Melvin Hall, who was a professor at LU at the time, substituted as Head Coach. His assistant was the Late Great Matthais Nimley, who was both an alumnus and former basketball superstar of the University of Liberia. Others that accompanied the team to Burkina Faso were Mr. Joseph S. M. Narmah, Director of Sports and Physical Education and Mr. Lavela Pewu, a French professor who played the role of interpreter for the delegation.