National Basketball League
UPDF Lady Tomahawks 61 KCCA Leopards 73
Kampala Rockets 72 UCU Canons 59
KIU Rangers 64 JKL Lady Dolphins 78
JKL Dolphins 71 KIU Titans 53
Kampala Rockets snapped UCU Canons’ three-game winning streak with a commanding 72-59 win in Wednesday night’s National Basketball League showdown at YMCA Wandegeya.
UCU entered the contest riding high after victories over JKL Dolphins, KIU Titans, and Nam Blazers, but the Rockets brought them crashing back to earth with a well-drilled performance that exposed the Canons’ inconsistencies.
Joel Kayiira was a lone bright spot for UCU, turning in a massive double-double of 20 points and 21 rebounds. Yet even his heroics couldn’t mask the Canons’ struggles a barrage of turnovers and poor perimeter shooting (just 7-for-26 from deep) undermined their efforts throughout the game.
After a tightly contested first quarter, which Rockets edged 20-19, the game tilted decisively in the second. Rockets turned up the pressure, outscoring UCU 23-8 in the period to take a 16-point halftime lead that the Canons never managed to threaten.
Mpiya Juf paced the Rockets with 17 points, Kevin Kasobya chipped in with 12, while Pauti Ozias Kikomba hauled in 10 rebounds in a strong all-around team effort that marked their 12th win of the campaign.
Though UCU outrebounded their opponents 59-44, their 24 turnovers proved costly.
The result underlines Rockets’ growing momentum as the season heads into its final stretch, following up on their recent win against Nam Blazers and putting the rest of the league on notice.
