After opening wins, Rivers Hoopers eye final ticket

Nigerian champions, Rivers Hoopers, started their campaign in the Sahara Conference of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) in dominant fashion, securing two of Senegal and Rwanda’s APR in Dakar at the weekend.

Rivers Hoopers beat AS Douanes 77-68 in their opening game on Saturday at the Dakar Arena, where four teams are fighting for Sahara Conference’s three qualification spots for the finals scheduled for Kigali, Rwanda, later this month.

In the first game, the Coach Ogoh Odaudu boys trailed by 9-10 points in the opening quarter, but they rallied from the second quarter to win the tie 77-68.

Speaking on the victory, Odaudu said his team was prepared for the hosts, attributing the win to “months of dedicated practice, smart player selections, and studying past games, which allowed us to work with cohesion and unity.”

He said: “We’re stopping at nothing in this championship.”

The win against Douanes saw Devine Eke (31 points, 12 rebounds) at his best, with Will Perry chipping in 15 points.

On Sunday against APR of Rwanda, which Rivers Hoopers won 86-83, point guard, Will Perry was the star performer as he dropped a game-high 29 points along with four rebounds and three assists.

After the game, APR captain, William Robeyns, attributed his team’s loss to “allowing Will Perry too many open shots.”

He acknowledged Perry’s skills and promised to learn from the experience.