In a nail-biting game, star guard Antino Jackson Jr. emerged as an unlikely hero, saving the day for RSSB Tigers who extended their Basketball Africa League (BAL) Kalahari Conference win record to 2-0.
Although Teafale Lenard Jr. led the scoring for Tigers with 26 points, in addition to Mangok Mathiang’s double-double (18 points and 12 rebounds), it was Jackson Jr. who sank the three-pointer that secured the Rwandan side’s 82-78 victory over Petro de Luanda on Sunday at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa.
Before scoring his game-winning three-pointer with just five seconds left on the clock, Jackson Jr. had missed all five of his shots and spent most of the second half on the bench. Being handed the role of game-decider after such a start was far from ideal.
The outcome of this game was uncertain until the end. Even when the Tigers reached their largest lead of 11 points in the fourth quarter, Petro de Luanda refused to back down.
Uncertainty loomed when Childe Dundao converted two free throws, tying the game at 78–78 with 19 seconds left on the clock.
That was the moment when Jackson Jr. decided to rewrite the narrative with his three-pointer, followed by a free throw that gave the RSSB Tigers a four-point win.
The RSSB Tigers showed tremendous resilience, coming back from a 10-point deficit to trail by just two (36–34) at half-time.
Jackson Jr. explained that their ultimate goal was to reach the BAL Playoffs in their home city of Kigali in May.
After two games played so far, Henry Mwinuka and his Tigers remain undefeated while Petro de Luanda dropped to a 1-1 mark.
To advance to the playoffs in Kigali, the Tigers will have to finish among the top four teams in the Kalahari Conference.