Equity Hawks claw APR to top group as KPA dominate
Equity Bank Hawks and Kenya Ports Authority went unbeaten in pools A and B respectively, the former facing a fierce Armee Patriotique Rwandaise (APR) side in the final group match for the hard-fought win.
KIGALI (Rwanda) - Kenyan sides proved their mettle to finish the group stage at the ongoing FIBA Africa Women's Basketball League ( AWBL) Zone Five qualifiers, top of their respective groups.
Equity Bank Hawks and Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) went unbeaten in pools A and B respectively, the former facing a fierce Armee Patriotique Rwandaise (APR) side in the final group match for the hard-fought win.
Equity deny APR to go top
Facing off for a top-place finish in pool A, APR lost 63-56 to Equity Bank Hawks in a match of two halves that saw the Rwandese side dominate on all fronts only to let the game slip away.
Eleven lead changes and the five times the two sides were tied are statistics that do not begin to describe the drama that was this crunch clash.
Charles Mbazumutima's charges had raced to a 14-9 lead in the first quarter, and, despite a spirited fight from the bankers who took the second stanza 16-15, the Rwandese side that enjoyed home support carried a four-point advantage to the halftime break.
Whatever pep-talk Benson Oluoch and his assistant Samba Mjomba gave their charges at the break seemed to work as they exploded for a 22-13 third-quarter outcome that gave them a 47-42 advantage heading to the final stanza.
In the opening two minutes of the final quarter, APR went on a six-point scoring spree to assume the lead at 48-47 forcing the bankers into a timeout that did little to stop the opponent as they were again ahead at 52-51.
Oluoch's charges went 57-52 ahead but the drama was not over as Shayla Cooper bagged back-to-back jumpers to bring APR to within a point of the Kenyan side. Melissa Otieno stepped on the free-throw line to make it 59-56.
APR missed twice from the free-throw line with Betty Kananu pouncing on the resulting rebound only to be fouled, her inbound going straight to the unmarked Vallary Kemunto who converted for 61-56 before Grace Malu, who finished the match with 25 points, 9 rebounds, finished the job for 63-56.
Melissa added 13 points to the bankers' tally with 4 assists and one steal as Kemunto added 12 for the win. Cooper was APR's best scorer with 14 points and 12 rebounds as Odile Tetero added 11 points in the loss.
APR dominated the statistics going 17-11 on points from turnovers, 13-0 on second-chance points and 20-08 on fast breakers, only outdone 16-13 from the bench but that did not matter in the end.
KPA down Nile Legends to headline Pool B
The Kenyan champions headed to the match as clear favourites and the South Sudanese side had nothing on Antony Ojukwu's charges, losing 70-49.
Aminata Samassekou, Victoria Reynolds and Hilda Indasi led the scoring with 16, 14 and 13 points respectively in the match that the Dockers led from first to last whistle dominantly.
Nile Legends' Brenda Kayaga led the scoring for her side with 14 points with skipper Nivin Lokuku bagging a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds as Ajah Akuak added one of her own with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Gladiators dominate Vijana Queens
Kamba Diakite may have top-scored for Burundi's Gladiators with 24 points, 6 assists and 6 steals but it was Nandy Linda who bossed both ends of the court for 21 points, 14 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 assists to lead the side to a 79-54 victory over Tanzania champions Vijana Queens.
Gladiators led all, but one, quarter in 19-08, 21-12, 20-25 and 18-09 scorelines for the 24-point victory.
The Belyse Gateka-coached Burundi side feasted on the opponent's turnovers tipping the balance with 37-14 points, 15-05 on second-chance points, 24-10 and 17-0 from fast breakers and bench points.
REG survive JKL onslaught
DR Congo international player Mireille Muganza Nyota's performance of 22 points and 19 rebounds went a long way in helping Rwanda Energy Group (REG) defeat JKL Dolphins 66-65 in a tightly contested clash that concluded the group stage encounters.
REG led 13-09 in the first quarter to carry a 4-point advantage into the half time after a 20-all-draw in the second quarter. Dolphins played for a 22-11 score in the third quarter to lead 51-44 heading to the final stanza.
The home side clawed back for a 22-14 final quarter performance that brought them back at the helm for the slim win.
Thursday fixtures:
Nile Legends vs Equity Bank Hawks
Vijana Queens vs KPA
JKL Lady Dolphins vs APR
Gladiators vs REG
FIBA