Nairobi City Thunder suffered a heartbreaking 77-74 loss to APR in the final game of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) campaign in Kigali, Rwanda last night
The Kenyan champions were felled by Obadiah Noel’s three-pointer with three seconds left on the clock, condemning them to their fifth loss of the Nile Conference.
The Kenyan champions led 19-17 and 26-18 in the first and second quarters
The Rwandese managed to narrow the score to 45-41 midway through the third quarter but coach Brad Ibs’ charges showed an indefatigable spirit to 61-55 at the close of the quarter.
However, the fourth quarter turned into an end-to-end action as APR finally managed to level the scores at 69 ups
And With the scores tied at 74 ups — and with three seconds on the clock — Noel received a pass on the right, shifted to his right foot and rose high for the winning shot.
Despite the loss, Albert Odero put in a Most Valuable Player (MVP) performance, sinking a game-high 29 points.
Joining him in double digits were Iroegbu (16 points) and William Davis II (14 points).
The Rwandan team APR basketball club is now headed to the 2025 BAL Playoffs in Pretoria