Tuesday Group A Rwanda 82-68 DR Congo Group B Tunisia 82-46 Guinea Egypt 72-56 CAR William Robeyns put up an impressive performance, scoring a game-high 23 points as the national team defeated the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in their first game of the Afrobasket tournament that tipped-off on Tuesday, August 24 in Kigali. BREAKING: Rwanda win their first #Afrobasketball2021 game. FT: Rwanda🇷🇼 82: 68 DR Congo 🇨🇩 pic.twitter.com/q8Wg4GqOTd — The New Times (Rwanda) (@NewTimesRwanda) August 24, 2021 Rwanda won the game 82-68, in the presence of President Paul Kagame, among other fans who turned up on the evening. The local side started well, winning the first quarter 24-15 and drawing the second one 19-19 and went into halftime with a 43-34 lead. Belgium-based power forward Robeyns, who was playing his first competitive game in national colours made a great impact in the first half, scoring 16 points and added 8 more in the second as Rwanda held on to register victory. DR Congo appeared to threaten more during the second half, as they won the third quarter 21-14, but Rwanda bounced back and claimed the last quarter 25-13 to win the match. Notable contribution was also made by shooting guard Kenny Gasana and Dieudonne Ndizeye who added 13 and 12 points respectively. After the game, Cheikh Sarr, Rwanda’s head coach noted that sometimes it is not easy to play at home due to pressure. “Playing at home is not easy because we are always under pressure, but we work hard, he said. In other matches, in Group B, defending champions Tunisia started well, winning their first game 82-46 against Guinea, while Egypt beat Central Africa Republic 72-56. Wednesday matches: Group C Nigeria vs Mali 12pm Cote d’Ivoire vs Kenya 9pm Group D Cameroun Vs South Sudan 3pm Senegal Vs Uganda 6pm
