Today Men IPRC- Kigali Vs Patriots (Amahoro Indoor Stadium, 8p.m)

Women U18 National Team Vs APR; 6pm

2016 national basketball league champions Patriots will be looking to bounce back from last Friday’s surprise defeat to APR when they take on Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centre (IPRC) - Kigali at Amahoro indoor stadium.

IPRC- Kigali are fighting for a top four finish to be able to play the play-off games and will have gained confidence from their 78-70 win over United Generation Basketball (UGB) last weekend.

"We want to win Friday’s (today) game, the players are fit and everything is in place to make it happen. We are playing one of the league’s giants, but we have prepared thoroughly,” IPRC-Kigali coach Albert Buhake said.

However, his Patriots counterpart, Herny Mwinuke, says his side can’t afford a second consecutive defeat.

"The game against IPRC- Kigali is a must-win. The title race has reached a crucial stage, where every game counts a lot. The target now is to win all of our remaining games,” the Tanzanian-born coach said.

Should Patriots win, they will have 20 points, level on points with current leaders REG. APR are in third with 18 points, IPRC-South are fourth with 17 points, with Espoir completing the top five with 15 points.

The much-anticipated clash will be preceded by a women’s league tie pitting the Under-18 national team against defending champions APR – it starts at 6p.m.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw