NBL Playoffs Results | Wednesday, July 10

• KIU Rangers 80-47 Miracle Ravens (1-0)
• Namuwongo Blazers 73-61 Our Savior (1-0)

KIU Rangers secured a well-deserved 80-47 victory against Miracle Ravens in the National Basketball League Playoffs on Wednesday evening at Lugogo Arena.

The Rangers took a commanding lead in the three-game series against Miracle Ravens.

KIU took a commanding 18-point lead (27-9) in the opening quarter to set the tone for the day.

Despite an improved performance by Miracle Ravens, they trailed by 24 points (46-22)at the end of the second stanza.

The one-sided ascendancy continued as the KIU Rangers opened a 33-point (69-36) lead at the end of the third quarter.

Suzan Amito’s floating jump shot concluded the game as Miracle Ravens trailed by 33 points.

Sharon Kirabo had a great performance, dropping 13 points and pulling down 10 rebounds to record a double-double. Rose Amaniyo (15) and Ines Kanyamuneza (14) also scored double digits for KIU.

Only Lilian Cherotich (10) and Brenda Alyano (10) scored double figures for the Ravens.

NBL Results | Sunday, July 7

• UCU Canons 73-49 Ndejje Angels
• Magic Stormers 58-59 Nabisunsa
• Miracle Ravens 96-49 Kampala University
• YMCA Lady Hamstars 22-70 KIU Rangers

UCU Canons climaxed the 2024 National Basketball League regular season with a victory against Ndejje Angels.

UCU Canons secured a 73-49 victory against Ndejje Angels in the ongoing NBL at YMCA Court at Wandegeya on Sunday.

Ndejje Angels came into the game knowing their fate of relegation into the second tier alongside Power.

Ndejje Angels kicked off the game on a great note creating a seven-point (19-12) lead after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Mukono-based side stepped up creating a four-point (33-29) lead going into the long break.

The Canons limited Ndejje Angels to nine points thus creating a 17-point lead going into the last block of the game.

Emmanuel Elungat’s driving layup concluded the game to give the Canons a 24-point victory.

Norbert Okidi (14), Jimmy Otim (12) and Lwabaga Ibanda (10) scored double digits for UCU Canons.

For Ndejje Angels scoring chart was led by Bolton Rujumba (12), Cikom Monybai (11) and Haron Alinaitwe (10).

Uganda Rugby Sevens have been crowned the Rugby Africa Sevens champions after beating South Africa in the final played at Labourdonnais Sports Club.

Uganda defeated South Africa, 20-15, thanks to an extra-time try from tournament MVP Aaron Ofoywroth.

The Rugby Cranes assume a 10-00 lead in the first half thanks to tries from Denis Etwau and Alex Aturinda. South Africa pulled one back before Etwau added another for Uganda at the stroke of halftime for a 15-05 lead.

South Africa controlled the bigger part of the second half and scored two tries with the second converted to take a 17-15 lead. Ofoyrwoth would then lead Ugaanda’s search for the winner and the playmaker delivered on the final play with the clock in the red zone.

It’s Uganda’s fourth continental sevens crown following success in 2016 (Nairobi) as well as 2017 and 2022 (both in Kampala). Philip Wokorach and Adrian Kasito have been part of all four African titles alongside head coach Tolbert Onyango.

By reaching the semifinal of Round Two, Uganda earned a ticket to compete in the 2025 Challenger Series, for a chance to be on the 2026 Main HSBC SVNS.

Focus for Uganda Rugby will now shift to the Africa 15s tournament that will be hosted in Kampala at Mandela National Stadium, Namboole under two weeks away.

Uganda swept through Pool A of the Second Round of the 2023 Africa Men’s Sevens on Saturday at Labourdonnais Sports Club in Mapou, Mauritius.

A coincidental draw saw Tolbert Onyango’s charges take on Tunisia, Côte d’Ivoire, and Burkina Faso again and they continued to assert their dominance over their opponents in the pool play as they did last weekend.

• Game 1: Uganda 36-00 Tunisia
• Game 2: Uganda 29-14 Cote d’Ivoire
• Game 3: Uganda 14-10 Burkina Faso

Uganda sailed over Tunisia without conceding a single point. Denis Etwau led the beat down with four tries while Aaron Ofoyrwoth and Adrian Kasito scored a try each.

Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso competed well, especially the latter as they both put points on the board.

Ofoyrwoth scored a brace with the other tries coming from Etwau, Pius Ogen and Alex Aturinda ass the Rugby Cranes overpowered Cote d’Ivoire

However, Burkina Faso went neck and neck with Uganda, keeping the Rugby Cranes scoreless in the second half but Kasito and Alex Aturinda’s converted first-half tries were enough to get over the line.

The Rugby Cranes will battle Zambia in the quarterfinals tomorrow (Sunday) morning as they continue their quest for a fourth African title.

NBL Results | Friday, July 5

• KIU Rangers 63-69 UCU Lady Cardinals
• City Oilers 71-64 UCU Canons

UCU Lady Canons completed the regular season with a victory against KIU Rangers in the University derby.

Lady Canons secured a 69-63 victory against KIU Rangers in the National Basketball League at YMCA Court on Friday.

The Lady Canons opened a one-point lead 19-18 at the end of the first stanza.

After two end-to-end quarters of basketball, the Lady Canons took a nine-point lead (43-34) before they went for a long break.

Sharon Kirabo’s layup concluded the third quarter as the KIU Rangers trailed by seven points (55-48).

Despite the fight from the Rangers, they painfully lost the game by six points (69-63) as Tracy Namugosa’s layup sealed the game.

Bridget Aber was so exciting for the Lady Canons as she posted a double-double dropping 25 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.

Still, Hajara Najjuko scored 11 points for the Lady Canons while Sylvia Nantongo picked 10 rebounds.

On the other hand, despite limping throughout the second half, Rose Amaniyo scored 16 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.

In the same breath, Patricia Alado scored 12 points while Sharon Kirabo picked 11 rebounds.

Uganda Rugby Cranes star Phillip Wokorach has signed for another Fench side Orleans Rugby Club.

Wokorach joins the Nationale 2 Division side on an initial two-year deal that runs until the summer of 2026.

“I chose the RCO for the ambition of the club and the interesting project and the excellent season they just had,” said Philip Wokorach about moving to RCO.

Phillip Wokorach joins RCO from A.S.B.C (Avenir Sportif de Bédarrides Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vaucluse Rugby) where he has been over the last four years.

The full-back played for Heathens in the local league before going semipro in France.

Wokorach is currently with Uganda’s National Sevens team playing at the Africa Sevens Cup in Mauritius chasing a spot in the 2025 Challenger Series.

Five-time National Basketball League champions Power has been relegated to Division One following a 61-54 defeat to Livingstone on Sunday afternoon at the YMCA Court in Wandegeya.

Power dropped to a 6-16 record after playing all their regular season game with the disappointing finish sending them down alongside Ndejje University Angels.

It’s a significant downturn for Power, a team with a storied history including five league titles, surpassed only by Falcons (6) – which also plays in Division I – and record winners City Oilers (9).

Power lost the battle to JKL Dolphins (7-14), Livingstone (8-13), and Kampala Rockets (8-13) who flirted with relegation throughout the regular season.

Timothy Odeke’s charges needed a win to keep their chances alive. However, despite leading the first quarter 15-13, Power managed only three points in the second quarter against Livingstone’s 17, trailing 30-18 at halftime and the writing was on the wall.

A spirited effort in the third quarter saw them reduce the deficit before knotting the game at 51-51 midway through the last quarter but Livingstone went on an 8-0 run in the final minutes secured their victory.

Taariq Powell and Geoffrey Soro scored 15 and 13 points respectively and were the only Power players to reach double digits in scoring.

Amara Ariho and Bismarck Okot contributed 16 and 12 points respectively for Livingstone.

Uganda’s National Sevens side completed the first round of the Rugby Africa Sevens tournament in Mauritius unbeaten.

The Rugby Cranes were crowned winners of Round One after beating Madagascar 31-12 in the final played at Labourdonnais Sports Club.

Aaron Ofoywroth opened the scoring for Uganda with a try in the corner and barely a minute later, the Rugby Cranes were over for the second try through Adrian Kasito that Philip Wokorach converted for a 12-00 lead.

However, Tolbert Onyango’s men were caught flat-footed when Madagascar kicked behind the high-line defence and followed through to score.

Ofoywroth had the last say of the first half with his second try of the game to take the lead to 17-05 at the break.

Madagascar had a clean kickoff reclamation to start the second half, scored right under the posts and reduced the gap to 5 (17-12).

Uganda would quickly recover, adding a pair of converted tries through Norbert Okeny and Timothy Kisiga to seal the game 31-12.

The Rugby Cranes are now in prime position heading into the ultimate round next weekend, and the fourth title is on the horizon.

2024 Rugby Africa 7s Standings after Round One (Top 6)

1. Uganda – 20 points
2. Madagascar – 18 points
3. South Africa – 16 points
4. Burkina Faso – 14 points
5. Zimbabwe – 12 points
6. Kenya – 10 points

Uganda Sevens had a flawless start to the 2024 Rugby Africa Cup in Mauritius having won all their three Pool B games at Labourdonnais Sports Club.

The Ugandans recovered from a slow start, twice coming from down to win 22-17 thanks to tries from skipper Munyani, Denis Etwau, Timothy Kisiga and Philip Wokorach.

Uganda returned for the second game with more determination ruthlessly brushing aside Tunisia, 43-00. Nobert Okeny scored a hattrick of tries, Denis Etwau crossed the white chalk twice, while Alex Aturinda and Karim Arinaitwe also grounded for the Rugby Cranes.

Tolbert Onyango’s men beat West Africans Burkina Faso in the ultimate Pool game, 29-00. Timothy Kisiga, Norbert Okeny (brace), Philip Wokorach, and Denis Etwau scored Uganda’s tries.

Action continues on Sunday with the quarterfinals. The opponents will be determined based on the ranking of the 8 qualified teams.

KIU Rangers avenged the first-round defeat to KCCA Leopards by picking a 78-56 win on Friday night to split the regular season series.

The Rangers started the game with intent, taking the opening quarter 26-15 as they got contributions from all over the floor. Stella Nanfuka, Rachael Nanyonga as well as usual suspects Rose Amaniyo, Ines Kanyamunza, and Sharon Kirabo all contributed in the high-scoring quarter.

KCCA tried to fight back early in the second quarter and cut the deficit to 6 points but once the Rangers got going again, the Leopards (15-6) were all but out of the contest as they were limited to just 9 points in the third quarter.

Amaniyo scored a game-high 19 points and picked 12 rebounds to lead Rangers (15-3), Kanyaamunza added 16 points and dished out 7 assists while Fildauce Namulema contributed 12 points.

Maggie Bagala scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in a nearly lone fight for KCCA. Perus Nyamwenge, the other KCCA player to score in double figures had 10 points.