Patriots head coach Henry Mwinuka is confident his side can go all the way to retain their basketball league title after winning Game 5 of the playoffs finals on Wednesday.

The defending champions ran 69-61 winners over Rwanda Energy Group (REG) to force the series into Game 6, which is due next week.

After five games, REG lead 3-2 but Patriots coach Mwinuka has insisted that the title is not decided yet and urged his players not to give up. 

"We played a fantastic game tonight, definitely we deserved the win,” Mwinuka told Times Sport in a post-match interview. "We have to regroup quickly and ready for Game 6, we are not going to rest until we retain the title.”

Point guard Sedar Sagamba and small forward Dieudonne Ndizeye scored a joint team-high 17 points to lift Patriots past REG. Steven Havugintwari added 14 points.

Mwinuka added: "Going forward, I think we need to be mentally stronger and also work on tactical aspects. Every detail matters at this stage, we can’t afford to take anything for granted.”

In the meantime, APR have taken a 3-2 lead in the women’s finals after winning 58-56 over the Hoops Rwanda in Game 5. 

APR star Sandra Kantore posted a game-high 21 points while teammate Charlotte Umugwaneza contributed 18 points. 

editor@newtimesrwanda.com