•Rwanda opened their account with 4:34 left in the quarter as Rosine Micomyiza connected for two shots from the foul line and they added to that tally but still trailed 17-5 as the first quarter ended.
Reigning champions Kenya Lionesses drubbed Rwanda 69-58 in the FIBA AfroBasket Women Zone 5 Qualifiers at MTN Arena, Lugogo in Kampala, Uganda.
It was Kenya’s second win of the championship after they beat hosts Uganda 61-53 in the opener. They top the chart with maximum points from two games. The Rwandese are on two losses.
Kenya had it all too easy after forward Mercy Wanyama had opened the floodgates with a quick basket for a 2-0 lead. Soon, they had rolled away to a 13-0 edge before Rwanda scored their first points of the game.
Rwanda opened their account with 4:34 left in the quarter as Rosine Micomyiza connected for two shots from the foul line and they added to that tally but still trailed 17-5 as the first quarter ended.
In the second quarter, Rwanda got off well scoring to reduce the margin 17-10 on free shots by Assouma Uwizeye before Vilma Owino's baskets had Kenya away again at 19-10 .
Kenya were in shambles defensively while also failing to hit the target, allowing Rwanda to charge back on efforts by Odille Tetero and Martine Umohoza to close in 29-25.
Rwanda then started to dictate the tempo putting on a better show in the third quarter as they stormed close at 48-46, mostly on deadly perimeter shooting as the quarter ended.
In the deciding quarter a Wanyama, Victoria Reynolds and Christine Akinyi deadly combination saw them off again, this time for good. A fast break by Akinyi made it a ten-point game at 62-52 with 4:47 to play, giving Rwanda no room to recover.
Wanyama led Kenya with 16 points, Reynolds managed 15 and seven rebounds, while Melissa Akinyi hit 12. Tetero grabbed 18 and Diamond Richardson bagged 10 and sunk a total of 10 three-pointers.