RSSB Tigers made historical past on Sunday at BK Area, changing into the primary Rwandan crew to win the Basketball Africa League (BAL) title after edging Petro de Luanda 90–88 in an exhilarating 2026 remaining.
Backed by a passionate dwelling crowd and watched by President Paul Kagame, the Tigers produced a outstanding comeback after a tough begin to deny Petro de Luanda a second BAL championship.
The victory additionally marked RSSB Tigers’ second win over the Angolan giants this season.
After struggling within the opening quarter, Craig Randall took management of the sport within the second interval and completed with a game-high 33 factors to guide the hosts to a historic triumph.
Aboubacar Pedro Gakou paced Petro de Luanda with 28 factors, however the 2024 champions suffered a serious setback when he fouled out late within the fourth quarter.
Petro stormed out of the gates with a 7–0 run, forcing Tigers coach Henry Mwinuka to name a timeout simply two minutes and eight seconds into the competition. The Angolans continued their dominance, extending their benefit to twenty unanswered factors earlier than RSSB lastly received on the scoreboard.
After lacking his first 4 makes an attempt, Randall broke the drought with a lay-up for the Tigers’ opening basket.
Gakou was the driving drive behind Petro’s quick begin, pouring in 15 factors within the first quarter because the Angolan facet constructed a commanding 27–16 lead.
Randall ignited the comeback early within the second quarter, flattening his first three-pointer to chop the deficit to twenty-eight–19. Moments later, he buried one other from past the arc to make it 28–22, sending the packed BK Area right into a frenzy.
The ambiance reached one other degree when the fan-favourite guard drained a 3rd three-pointer to provide the Tigers their first lead of the sport at 37–35. The gang erupted into chants and celebration as momentum swung decisively in favour of the house facet.
Petro coach Sergio Valdeomillos instantly referred to as a timeout in an effort to regular his crew.
The state of affairs turned much more difficult for the Angolan champions when Gakou, Petro’s solely participant in double figures on the time with 20 factors, picked up his third foul. Valdeomillos was compelled to take him out to keep away from the chance of an early disqualification.
Rising in confidence with each possession, the Tigers closed the half on a excessive observe and carried a 42–37 lead into the break.
Petro’s 13 turnovers, mounting foul hassle and defensive changes have been probably main factors of debate within the locker room. Whereas their rotating defence had served them effectively all through the season, it faltered when it mattered most.
For Randall, the night time capped a rare BAL marketing campaign. Having already etched his identify into the league’s document books with a 54-point efficiency—the highest-scoring recreation in BAL historical past—he delivered one other masterclass to information the Tigers to their maiden continental crown in entrance of the membership’s dwelling followers and his spouse Sarrah Marie specifically.
His excellent season was additional recognised after the ultimate when FIBA Africa President Annibal Manave introduced him with the 2026 BAL Most Invaluable Participant award.
