NAIROBI (Kenya) - The fourth day of the Women's Basketball League Africa (WBLA) Qualifiers Zone 5 saw hosts Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) record the first century victory of the 2025 campaign, a sharp contrast from their Thursday opponent, Rwanda's APR who took things easy, playing for their lowest scoring victory against Uganda's Stomers.
Elsewhere, on-form Les Hippos picked their second victory of the championship, heading to the final day of group action unbeaten.
Les Hippos beat Don Bosco to go 2-0
Burundi's Les Hippos made a commanding return to the court after two days of rest, delivering yet another impressive performances with a 91-65 victory over Tanzania's Don Bosco Lioness. Powered by the lethal Diedhiou Laurence Sabine, who scored 27 points, coming a rebound shy of a double-double, Hippos made their runs, whenever momentum favoured them, count, stopping Lioness on their tracks in their resurgence attempts. "Lioness are not an easy team to play but we were looking for that second win to assure ourselves a place in the Semis. We are taking every game as a final and that was the approach here. We still need to work on our turnovers, but, I am impressed with the team's rebounding and that's something we will do more of in our last group game against Rwanda Energy Group," Les Hippos head coach Josue Ndimugakiza, told FIBA.basketball.
The match got off to a good start as both sides exchanged leads, Lavender Opondo going off for eight points as Lioness led 10-8 halfway through the quarter. The Tanzanians gave away two crucial possessions, Senegalese forward Laurence Sabine punishing them instantly with fastbreak layups that started a 19-3 dominance to see Hippos lead 27-13.
Lioness snapped back to life in the second quarter, Taudencia Oluoch getting the period going with a steal for a basket, before converting two from the free-throw line to cut their deficit to ten (27-17) in the opening minute. Hippos responded, Elsa Niyonkuru and Gisele Makenga converting from range to pull the Burundians away for 39-22.
Brittany Nichole Autry went on a 6-0 run to stretch their advantage to 19 (45-26) five minutes in.
The Tanzanians played better in the remaining time, Irene Mahaya leading the comeback attempt with 10 points, including two treys. Rukia Hamisi's clutch putback saw the match head to the halftime with scores at 53-42. The Dar es Salaam champions endured a difficult start to the second half, going without scoring for four minutes while allowing the opponent to rebuild their advantage to 20 at 62-42.
Attempts to adjust offensively were met by a more grounding zone defense while Ndimugakiza's charges enjoyed hot hands for a 25-9 quarter that all but sealed victory for the Burundians. "We had two days off, trained for this fixture but it didn't go out way. We were shaky in the first and third quarter, as we tried to make switches in defense but inexperience cost us. It is a tough loss as our chances for qualifying are now slim but we are here to compete and we will bring the same energy in the remaining matches, have the players show out their talents and learn as much as they can. We have a lot to work on when we get back home, and we hope to come back to this stage better," Lioness coach Sylvian Yunzu said.
APR silence Magic Stomers to set decider clash against KPA
Charles Mushumba's APR remain unbeaten after three matches, having seen off Uganda's Magic Stomers 70-50, recovering from a slow start that had them scoring four in the opening five minutes for victory. The reigning WBLA bronze medalists rested 2023 championship winner Yacine Diop and Martine Umuhoza, with the coach rotating his 10-man squad, giving more time to his reserve players who proved just as efficient as his starting five, sealing the win. Assouma Uwizeye and A'Lexxus Davis led the charge for the Rwandese national champions, scoring 14 points and picking 16 rebounds respectively as APR came out top on both ends of the court, albeit not as dominant. "So far I think we are getting a little bit better with each game. Today we started a bit slow, being our third match but we dug deep, found our way, communicated and came together as a team to win. As we head to the tougher matches, I believe we have the depth on our bench to handle such," APR forward Davis told FIBA.basketball.
Unlike their previous matches, it took almost the entire first period for APR to get into rhythm. With less than three minutes to play, they led 9-7 but Kamba Yoro Diakite and Destiney Philoxy scored five to pull the Rwandese away for 14-7. Sylva Nakituuka kept Stomers in contention, scoring 8 in two minutes for 19-16, establishing herself as the Ugandan side's dangerman. However, Mushumba's charges quickly found a solution for her lethal shot to see the second quarter end 23-15, APR carrying a 15-point advantage into the second half. John Omondi's Stomers played a decent third quarter, going 16-13 up but their first half sins meant they still had a 12-point deficit to overcome in the final stanza. For four minutes in the final quarter, however, Stomers failed to score, coming alive in the final two minutes to score 11 in a 20-12 quarter, too little too late to make a difference. "Playing against professionals was a bit intimidating at first as I came in expecting tough competition. I am, however, impressed with how we showed up today. We were composed and we played better than yesterday. We messed up with rushed plays and that cost us. We are, however, picking positives from this competition," Stomers forward Nakituuka offered.
KPA show off against Gladiator in first century win
Hosts Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) left nothing to chance in their penultimate Group A clash against Burundi's Gladiators, running the scores in a highly one-sided affair for a 100-42 win. An opening half to forget for Gladiators had the Antony Ojukwu-led side dominate the quarter 22-6, four off the charity stripe and a basket from Naomie Muco and 26-5, Elsa Bukuru scoring their sole basket. Despite leading 48-11 at halftime, KPA returned guns blazing, playing for a 31-16 third quarter. The Burundians were, however, enjoyed the improvement on offense and their enthusiasm set the stage for an entertaining final quarter as the KPA fanbase cheered their side on to the first century victory of the 2025 qualifiers.
"It feels great to win this way. Yesterday we were on and off but today we were making adjustments, especially defensively while focusing on tomorrow's game. We want to get the title back and we are leaving nothing to chance. We are very positive and everyone is fit. We are ready to handle APR," KPA guard Natalie Mwangale said. Her sentiments were echoed by assistant coach Dorcas Anyango who admitted they used today's match as practice for what's to come as they head to the tougher assignments. "We are well aware of tomorrow's challenge but we are ready. The plan is make use of every possession and remain solid throughout for victory," she offered.
The match-up brings back memories of the 2024 Qualifiers' third-place clash for both sides, with KPA keen to turn tables on the Rwandese side, in front of what's expected to be the highlight match of Thurday.
FIBA