The Rwanda Basketball League playoffs finals have reached the fourth game, a crucial stage where the trophy may go to Rwanda Energy Group, if The Patriots don't stage a comeback from their 1-2 deficit.

So far, three games of the best-of-five finals were played, with REG winning two and The Patriots one.

On Wednesday, September 14, the fourth game will take place at the BK Arena, at 8pm. A win for REG will be enough to earn them this season's trophy.

It is expected to be a tough duel since The Patriots are determined to fight hard.

If The Patriots win, a fifth and final game must be played on Friday, September 16.

The previous three games were tightly contested. The Patriots won the first 75-70, but REG bounced back to win the second and third 79-70 and 82-75, respectively.

History of the two teams in winning trophies

The Patriots won four championships in the past 10 years in the Rwanda Basketball League, while REG bagged two.

The Patriots' maiden league title came in 2016 after beating their close challengers, Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centre (IPRC-South), 52-45, in the finals.

Later, in 2018, the team returned to win the second title after overcoming REG 3-1 in a best-of-five final series.

In 2019 and 2020, the Patriots were also the champions, a feat that means they won the trophy three consecutive times.

For REG, their first title came in 2017, and the second in 2021.

What winning the cup means

The team that wins the cup will represent Rwanda in the Basketball Africa league, an NBA-sponsored competition that attracts clubs from various countries on the continent.

This is arguably the biggest reward for the team that takes the trophy. It gives them an opportunity to play at such a high level. Besides this, the two teams may as well want to establish themselves as giants on the local scene.

This pride will be at stake when they meet for the fourth game, on Wednesday evening, or on Friday, for the fifth game, if it gets that far.