Thursday, October 19
*KIU Rangers 66-68 JKL Lady Dolphins – O.T (1-3)
*KIU Titans 76-83 City Oilers (1-3)
The JKL Lady Dolphins secured a thrilling victory, defeating the KIU Rangers 68-66 in an intense Game Four of the National Basketball League finals series held at Lugogo.
This hard-fought win required overtime, as the Lady Dolphins made a remarkable comeback, after KIU Rangers had their 12-point lead erased.
With a 3-1 lead in the best of seven final series, JKL is now on the verge of clinching their third championship in history if they win Game Five on Sunday.
Rita Imanishimwe (14 points), Ekone Brenda (13 points), and Flavia Oketcho (12 points) all delivered double-digit performances for JKL.
Becky Longom also had 21 rebounds for a JKL team that will soon start preparations for the Zone V Club Championships in Kigali.
Perus Nyamwenge led the KIU Rangers with an impressive 27 points on 10-of-21 shooting, but her outstanding effort ultimately couldn’t secure the win.
KIU Rangers started strong, leading the first quarter 25-16. They maintained a 9-point lead at halftime with the score at 38-29.
JKL mounted a comeback in the third quarter, outscoring KIU 15-8, cutting the deficit to just two points heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, KIU Rangers began with a 10-3 run, taking a 9-point lead midway through the period. However, JKL staged another run, tying the game at 58-58 with about eight seconds left on the clock.
KIU had a crucial opportunity to win the game from a late timeout, but Ines Kanyamunza’s three-pointer missed, and Uwineza Ninette couldn’t convert the layup after grabbing a rebound.
Rita Imanishimwe scored seven consecutive points for JKL in the early stages of Overtime, and despite KIU responding by narrowing the deficit to two points, JKL held on to their lead.
And JKL successfully ran down the clock to secure a hard-fought victory.
