Saturday Patriots Vs APR 6pm Just a day after its inauguration, Lycee de Kigali gymnasium hosts the first competitive basketball match on Saturday when APR and Patriots go head to head in a highly-anticipated national basketball league rendezvous. The 1500-seat facility was since October 2022 constructed through a partnership between NBA Africa and Rwanda’s basketball governing body (FERWABA), and is expected to benefit thousands of youths from Kigali and surrounding communities, as well as professional basketball players. APR’s game against Patriots is one of the league fixtures that were scheduled to be held at the gymnasium when Ferwaba unveiled the 2022/23 Rwanda Basketball League fixture calendar in December 2022. Saturday’s encounter pits two league hopefuls where neither of the two would want another setback at this particular point of the season. Going into today’s clash, Patriots and APR stand in the first and third place, with 15 and 12 points respectively. The latter, however, have two games in hand. Table leaders Patriots, who lost once in eight games, will be looking to shock a tough APR side which is unbeaten so far this season after six league games. Henry Mwinuka’s side reinforced their squad ahead of the crunch game with US-based center Kendall Lamar Gray and shooting guard Kenneth Gasana, now in the squad confirmed to play against APR. Both teams come into the game in good spirits after winning their Friday night games. The Patriots defeated the Tigers 77-62 while APR overcame Kigali Titans 74-58. Meanwhile, defending champions Rwanda Energy Group (REG) beat IPRC-Kigali 97-53.
