Friday, 29

Men

APR 78-75 REG

Women

APR 77-75 REG

Champions APR put up a spirited and dominant power force late in the fourth quarter to edge ‘resilient’ Rwanda Energy Group (REG) basketball club with a nail-biting 78-75 victory in Friday night’s basketball league at Lycée de Kigali Gymnasium.

Mazen Trakh’s men rallied from 13 points down in the final quarter to overcome REG and it was Zion Styles’ late dunk that summed up the game, capitalizing from a host of rival team’s wasteful chances from free throw in the last seconds.

Point guard Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza led the scores for the army side with 19 points, four rebounds and three assists.

ALSO READ: APR, REG square off in ‘Good Friday’ basketball league rendezvous

Adonis Filer also showed up to the party with 15 points, but it was a night to remember for American point guard Zion Styles who caught fire in the final seconds as his points in final seconds of the fourth quarter proved crucial to the team’s hard-fought win in a situation when REG were close to taking the game home.

Zion bagged 14 points and five rebounds.

The victory eased pressure on APR following a blow out from Patriots BBC last week.

Despite the loss, REG showed a point to prove against the defending champions as they fought till the last second of the game. Club’s new signing, point guard, Antino Jackson was a joy to watch as he scooped the admiration from the crowd inside LDK Gymnasium, especially thanks to his style and ability to score.

Jackson had 20 points to himself in the night.

REG also displayed great chemistry between its players, especially the guards. They only lost on small details.

With the win, APR lead the league standings with 17 points, three points clear of Patriots who have two games in hand while REG are in third place with 12 points.

It was a double blow for REG whose women’s team suffered a 75-77 loss at the hands of APR women BBC after overtime in another closely contested clash of titans in the women’s basketball league.