Friday

Group C

 REG Vs Ferroviario da Beira

Rwanda Energy Group (REG) Basketball Club captain Ali Kazingufu Kubwimana has said teamwork will play a pivotal role if the club is to top Group C in the FIBA Africa Basketball  league (AfroLeague) that starts on February 8 in Cairo, Egypt.

After beating local rivals Patriots in the National Heroes day basketball tournament last week, REG will go in the tournament in good form.

Egypt will host Group C games, which include African powerhouse Al Ahly, Angola’s Primeiro de Agosto and Ferroviario da Beira of Mozambique.

REG start their group campaign against Ferroviario da Beira on Friday before taking on Primeiro de Agosto the following day, and Al Ahly on Sunday.

Reacting to the draw, which put REG in what many believe is the group of death, Kubwimana said "It’s a tough group but I am sure we can beat anyone. What we need to do is to be confident that we can compete with any of the big teams”.

The clubs that finish in the top two from each of the four groups will advance to the second round, which will mark the beginning of the knock-out stages.

Basically, this means that this week’s FIBA ABL action will certainly define and significantly impact the rest of the season for Al Ahly, D’Agosto, REG and Ferrovario da Beira.

So, considering that Groups A, B and D will only take place over the next weeks, the inevitable question now is. Who will be the first two teams to move on to the Elite 8 of the Africa Basketball League 2019.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw