NAIROBI (Kenya) - Day two of Zone Five's WBLA qualifiers saw continental bronze medalists play for a statement victory as Burundi's Les Hippos opened their campaign triumphantly too.
Meanwhile, Tanzania's Fox Divas who had suffered defeat on the opening day, bounced back to pick a win that gave them overnight lead in Group A.
Here's the day's action:
Les Hippos open campaign on winning note
Burundi's Les Hippos, under the tutelage of Josue Ndimugakiza overcame an early scare from home side Zetech Sparks, to play for a 75-61 victory.
The opening quarter was tightly contested with Hippos going ahead early on but the host team came back, momentarily taking the lead at 11-7, but the Burundians fought back to lead by a point (15-14).
Shauqunna Nicole Collins' shot from range halfway through the second quarter for 25-21 started a 10-3 run for Ndimugakiza's charges, to take an 11-point cushion to the halftime break.
"We got here four days before the competition and that gave us time to gel, which was evident in our opening win. We have a good squad and the players are selfless, they played as a unit and that is what we were looking for as we bolstered the team for this competition," coach Ndimugakiza admitted after their victory.
Mary Lisa Omondi got action going in the second half with a layup, Christine Akinyi adding a trey in the opening minutes to get the difference back to single digits (36-29). Elsa Niyonkuru's six-point run, with four off the charity stripe, restored Les Hippos advantage to 15 points with more than six minutes to play and there was no turning back as the Burundians ran the scores for 59-39 heading to the final stanza.
Zetech's attempt at a resurgence in a final quarter 22-16 dominance was too little too late to give them their first ever WBLA qualifiers victory. The Maurice Obilo-led side now have their work cut out when they take on Rwanda Energy Group (REG) on Tuesday afternoon.
"My players had a slow start and picked very late in the match but that's all down to nerves and inexperience given this is their first time on this stage. We are not putting them under pressure to perform. They will get the experience and as the tournament goes on, we will see better from them," Zetech head coach Maurice Obilo admitted.
APR subject Gladiators to first defeat in dominant fashion
WBLA reigning bronze medalists, APR, fielding a star-studded squad, made easy work of Burundi's Gladiators for a statement 97-42 victory, getting their campaign off to a spectacular start.
The Rwandese side capitalised on Gladiators' poor ball handling, punishing their 30 turnovers for 43 points. Charles Mushumba's side also dominated the paint 46-22 in a match that started off as a worthy match-up before quickly turning into a one-sided affair.
"Our goal is to win and we are taking it game by game. We realised our off day yesterday meant we play four matches back-to-back so we had to come out strong and let everyone have a feeling of the game. That same energy is what we will be bringing in each of our matches. The goal is to win and that's all we want," APR guard Destiny Philoxy said after the win.
Back-to-back shots from range for Italee Lucas pulled the military side off to a quick 10-2 start. Gladiators fought back, a Naomie Muco three and a Kadidiatou Traore contribution from the free-throw line bringing them two points shy at 12-10. For four minutes, however, Arsène Mfuranzima's charges were shut down, allowing APR to pull away for a 24-10 lead.
Mushumba's charges ran the scores for a 33-10 lead with more than six minutes to play in the stanza. APR's defensive switch to a 3-2 zone proved a tough nut for Gladiators, who succumbed in quarters of 25-10, 29-13, and 19-9, APR having fielded their reserve players for the better part of the second half.
"APR were more prepared than us and we have a lot of things we need to fix. First we had too many turnovers most of which came from bad attacks. We did not respond well to their switch in defense. Our defense was also poor, allowing easy baskets. We will work on said issues before the next match," offered coach Mfuranzima.
Malian forward Kamba Yoro Diakite top scored for APR with 17, three more than Lucas and Assouma Uwizeye.
Fox Divas bounce back against Stomers
Merycyana Mashauri starred for Tanzania's Fox Divas as the Cathbet John Maganga-coached side picked their first win in a 68-55 show against Uganda's Magic Stomers.
The forward, who got just under seven minutes of play in the opening match against Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), scored 18 points, completing her double-double with 15 rebounds, while adding six steals in the victory.
It didn't take long for fans to figure that this would be a fight to the final whistle as it was a match-up between equals. In a game of runs, Fox drew first blood to lead 12-5 but Christine Namyalo tied the match at 13 from behind the arc. The Tanzanians managed to pull away for a 20-17 advantage in the opening quarter. Stomers continued to chase the game in the second stanza, managing to keep Fox close for 34-33 at halftime.
Namyalo and Sylva Nakituuka handed Stomers the lead, albeit monetarily, four minutes into the third, but Fox shut them down for more than three minutes, scoring eight crucial points for a 52-48 advantage. The final quarter was a defensive masterclass from Fox, who went on a 16-7 run to seal their first victory in Nairobi.
"It was not an easy match but we needed this win and we gave it our all. We had many mistakes in our opening match and that's what we worked on. Personally, I think in the opening match I was very nervous, being my debut, but in today's match I felt confident and I'm happy to have helped the team win," Tanzania forward Mashauri told FIBA.basketball.
The third day of action will see Zetech Sparks face Rwanda Energy Group (REG), Fox take on APR while hosts Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) play Stomers.
FIBA