Odile Tetero tallied 30 points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished out nine assists as APR BBC defeated REG Women BBC 84-81 to take a 2-1 lead in the Betpawa Playoffs Finals.
The back-to-back defending champions, REG Women BBC, had a better start to the game, leading the opening quarter 22-11 and the first half 37-32.
Déo Nkurikiyinka and Aimée Karim Nkusi adjusted the tactics prior to the third quarter, and APR began to control the game with Akon Rose driving into the paint at will, dropping 10 points in the first 5 minutes of the third quarter due to poor defending from REG BBC, who had already benched Betty Kalanga after she registered her third personal foul.
APR went on to build up a 10-point advantage, however Akon Rose picked up her third personal foul, forcing Nkurikiyinka to withdraw her. And from there, REG clawed its way back into the game, closing the third quarter behind by two points, 55-53.
The last period was a back-and-forth battle until 27 seconds left, when APR led 80-78.
Cooper Shayla missed a mid-range shot when she could have attacked the rim, and the short clock was at 15, As a consequence, REG made a fast break, followed by a two-point basket by Muganza plus a foul to score an extra free throw.
With 19 seconds left, Muganza Nyota Mireille converted that free throw to give REG BBC a one-point lead. 81-80
Déo Nkurikiyinka, APR’s interim head coach, called a timeout and restarted the game in front court.
With the ball flowing well, Sandra Kantore found Assouma Uwizeye, who dropped a three-pointer and drew a foul to take a two-point lead with a free throw bonus.
Uwizeye scored a free throw to conclude the game 84-81 and give her team a 2-1 series lead.
Aside from Odile Tetero’s 30-point effort, Akon Rose posted 20 points and Assouma Uwizeye supplied 15 points in APR’s victory.
Betty Kalanga and Mireille Nyota Muganza scored 27 and 14 points for The Electricians, respectively.
Game four in the series will be played on Wednesday.
