Champions Club Zone-3: Pillars, Hoopers book final round ticket

t was double honour for Nigerian sides, Kano Pillars and Rpyal Hoopers basketball clubs at the Zone-3 qualifying round of Africa biggest club competition, FIBA Aafrica Champions Club for Men in Monrovia, Liberia as they both snatched the two tickets at stake for clubs in the Zone-3.

Kano Pillars who successfully defended the FIBA Africa Zone-3 title it won last year in Benin Republic defeated Cote dIvoire league champion, Abidjan Basket Club (ABC) by 65-42 points in the last day of the qualifiers on Sunday at the gymnasium of the SKD Sports Complex to maintain its hundred percent record becoming the only team that did not drop a point in the week-long qualifiers.

Shaking off its 87-70 points lose to Pillars on Match Day-4, Royal Hoopers basketball club humbled Togo league champion, Swallows basketball club by 74-29 points in a game that kept the fans cheering all the way.

Hoopers who finished second behind Pillars with four wins and one lose began the final day game against Swallows with a 23-13 points win in the first quarter, as if looking to set record in its first continental outing the Hoopers side coached by the trio of Coaches Ogoh Odaudu, Johnson Orupabo and Lami Johnson stopped Swallows from registering a double digit in the last three quarters winning by 21-04, 20-03 and 10-09 points for a final score-line of 74-29 points.

NPA Pythons basketball club avenged its Liberia domestic league title lose to UHURU Kings basketball club in a local derby.

After losing the first quarter by 11-18 points the Pythons dominated the game from the second quarter all through the buzzer winning the second, third and last quarters by 10-08, 21-10 and 10-09 points to win the game by 52-45 points.

All the results.

Day-1:
UHURU Kings 55-66 Royal Hoopers
NPA Pythons 53-85 Kano Pillars
ABC 60-41 Swallows

Day-2:
NPA Pythons 61-73 Royal Hoopers
Kano Pillars 64-50 Swallows
UHURU Kings 49-59 ABC

Day-3:
Royal Hoopers 60-44 ABC
Swallows 60-58 NPA Pythons
Kano Pillars 67-42 UHURU Kings

Day-4:
Royal Hoopers 70-87 Kano Pillars
NPA Pythons 45-53 ABC
Swallows 44-56 UHURU Kings

Day-5:
ABC 42-65 Kano Pillars
Swallows 29-74 Royal Hoopers
UHURU Kings 45-52 NPA Pythons