FridayAPR vs 30-Plus 6pmEspoir vs Patriots 8pm

SaturdayWomenThe Hoops Rwa vs Ubumwe 3pm

Sunday: MenRusizi vs IPRC-South 9amCSK vs REG 1pmIPRC-Kigali vs UGB 3pm

Former league champions Espoir have vowed to end Patriots title hopes this season when both sides meet on Friday night in the national basketball league at Amahoro Indoor Stadium – the game starts at 8pm.

Regular season reigning champions Patriots suffered their second defeat of the season against fellow title contenders Rwanda Energy Group (REG) 68-78 last Friday, who went on to leapfrog them at the top of the table.

The Kagugu-based side dropped to second position with 24 points, one point behind REG and a win against Espoir this evening would see them reclaim the top spot before REG plays against winless and bottom-placed Cercle Sportif de Kigali (CSK) on Sunday.

However, the two crucial points will not be delivered to them on a silver platter, according to Espoir coach Maxime Mwiseneza whose team are one point behind Patriots, in the third place. A win for Espoir would take them level with Patriots and keep the title race wide open.

"We still have hopes of winning the title because we expect REG to stumble somewhere in the remaining five games. Therefore, it is important that we win against Espoir, who are also still in the race,” Mwiseneza told Times Sport.

Patriots defeated Espoir 65-51 in the first round clash, but the four-time league winners revenged in the Heroes’ Day tourney semi-final, with a 73-68 victory.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw