APR Basketball Club clinches the Rwanda Basketball League title for the second year in a row, overcoming the Patriots 73-70 in a tough Game 6. They concluded the best-of-seven series with a 4-2 record.
September 22— At BK Arena, APR Basketball Club successfully defended their Rwanda Basketball League title by defeating Patriots in a tense Game 6 of the Playoffs Finals.
A strong third period helped APR win a tightly contested game that came down to the wire. The depth of APR’s roster was extremely important, especially as Patriots played without the injured William Kiah Perry.
Perry suffered a back injury in Game 5, ruling him out for Game 6. Despite struggles with bench depth earlier in the series, Henry Mwinuka rallied his team to fight until the final seconds of the game. A missed three-pointer by Branch Stephaun could have tied the game and forced overtime.
Stephaun, the Patriots’ leading scorer, also missed a buzzer-beater in Game 5 that could have sealed the game for them. The scores were 17-19, 19-14, 25-18, and 12-19, with the Patriots’ late comeback falling short, leaving them without a trophy this season.
APR’s recruitments paid off, especially with outstanding performances from guard Isaiah Jaleel Miller and big man Aliou Fadiala Diarra. Miller, eventually dubbed the Playoffs Finals Most Valuable Player (Playoffs MVP), shone offensively during this campaign, while Diarra’s defensive prowess helped APR secure back-to-back league titles for the first time since 2009.
The Malian center led the finals in both rebounds and blocks, averaging 16.1 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game. Miller’s 19 points in Game 6 brought his finals average to 20.1 points per game, the highest in the series.
APR finished the Rwanda Basketball League regular season in second place behind the Patriots, having lost both first and second leg matches against them. However, with changes in coaching staff that saw James Edward Maye take over from Mazen Trakh and strategic trades, the reigning champions entered the postseason with renewed determination, eliminating REG BBC in semifinals and reaching the finals and facing Patriots.
This title marks a treble for the Lions in the 2024 season, as they also won the inaugural Rwanda Cup and the GMT.
This title marks APR’s 15th Rwanda Basketball League championship, the most in Rwanda’s history and the Rwanda’s army team will represent the country in 2025 Basketball Africa League.
