Patriots captain, Aristide Mugabe has spoken out on the great performance his team put up as they saw off Mozambiques Ferroviaro de Maputo to book a place in the semi-finals of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). In a tightly contested game on Thursday, Patriots showed character and determination to overcome the powerful Mozambicans 73-71. Mugabe got 18 points, and was one of the players that stood out as his team made history on the night. Speaking about the game, Mugabe paid tribute to the fans, saying the crowd drove the team to victory. President Paul Kagame was one of the people that turned up for the match, along with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron who was in the country on a two day visit. “It’s an honor for us to play in front of our president, and, of course, he had a guest. We had to make sure we make him proud,” Mugabe said. “There was no way we would disappoint him. It’s like when your father brings a guest, telling him, ‘My kid is doing well’ and you disappoint him. We are happy that we made him proud. Speaking about the fans that turned up for the game in general, Mugabe appreciated their energy. We can’t thank enough our fans. They gave us extra-energy when we needed them the most, especially in the last four to five minutes of the game, he said. They kept us on our toes. We are happy that we gave them the joy that they needed. Patriots will face Tunisian giants US Monastir in the semi-finals on Saturday.
