Saturday

REG           76-73   IPRC-South

Friday

Patriots       59-61   Espoir

IPRC-Kigali  91-79   UGB

Shooting guard Armel Sangwe scored 19 points to power Espoir to 61-59 victory as champions Patriots suffered a second consecutive defeat in the national basketball league.

Despite taking the opening quarter 17-11 and going into half time with a 30-16 lead, Patriots quickly blew up their advantage with poor shooting coupled with defensive errors as Maxime Mwiseneza’s side fought back to dominate the third quarter 23-13.

Espoir held a 49-43 lead going into the decisive quarter, and were able to hold off late charge from Henry Mwinuke’s men for a hard-fought victory despite losing the quarter 16-12.

Burundi-born youngster Sangwe posted a game high 19 points, while skipper Emile Galois Kanezeza contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Ally Ruzigande and Steven Havugintwari posted 16 points apiece for Patriots, whilst point guard Sedar Sagamba added 12 points on the fateful Friday night at Amahoro Stadium.

The two-time reigning champions had lost 81-78 to IPRC-Kigali the previous weekend.

In the meantime, table leaders Rwanda Energy Group (REG) capitalised on their rivals’ loss to go it solo at the summit following their tightly fought 76-73 win over IPRC-South on Saturday.

REG top the table with 19 points, one ahead of Patriots, while Espoir are third 17 points.

editor@newtimesrwanda.com