Sunday

REG 64-48 Kwara Falcons

American Power forward Delwan Graham lived up to the bills as his game-high 16 points powered REG to a 64-48 victory over Nigeria&039;s Kwara Falcons on Sunday and lift the team off to a bright start at the ongoing BAL 2023 Sahara conference regular season going on in Dakar.

The 34-year old made his presence on the Dakar Arena court noticed as he stood out with great attacking prowess and solid defensive display to make life difficult for the Nigerians in a performance that earned him a Visit Rwanda man of the match.

Shooting guards Cleveland Thomas Jr and Adonis Filer added 14 points and 10 points respectively for REG to pile more misery on the Falcons who looked lost in the last two quarters.

REG started the game well winning the first quarter 16-9, but Nigeria's Kwara Falcons fought back to win the second one 20-15 and stay in the game.

Back in the second half, Dean Murry’s men distinguished themselves with great partnerships that put them in control of the game and start where they stopped during last year’s regular season.

After the game, Graham could not hide his joy after an impressive display in his BAL debut game.

"I want to give a shout out to REG too for having me. You know it's the first game, you have a lot of jitters in, but we put the pieces together,” he said.

The American credited his performance to his team mates who he said, helped him to play well.

"Without my team, I couldn't do what I did out there and, again, we just got to keep pushing and keep going, we have more games to go."

In a post-game interview, REG coach Murray heaped praise on his players.

"I thank the players in general, but this is the beginning and we are trying to prepare for the next game, and every team here is good and has different abilities," he noted.

The Rwandan champions return to action on Tuesday, March 14, where they will take on Côte d’Ivoire’s ABC Fighters who beat home side AS Douanes 76-70 during Saturday’s Sahara Conference opening game.