Basketball in Africa

BY JULIUS MBARAGA

Star point guard back to finish unfinished business

HAMZA Ruhezamihigo has started his preparations for the upcoming Fiba-Afrobasket competition in Libya.
The point guard who can also play as a shooting guard was the last player to join the squad after jetting in on Tuesday. Mathew Miller and Robert Thomson arrived on Monday from USA, much to the delight of head coach Kavedzija Vaceslav.

Ruhezamihigo has unfinished business after failing to live up to Vaceslav’s expectations early this year when Rwanda hosted the Zone 5 championships.
Ruhezamihigo, who plays in Canada with Concordia, became a crowd favourite during the 2007 Zone 5 Championships which were held in Kigali. He was by far Rwanda’s best player and there was little surprise when he was voted the tournament’s most valuable player (MVP).
Ruhezamihigo together with Miller and Thomson are expected to play a key role for Rwanda in the event, which also doubles as a qualifier for next year’s FIBA-World Championships.

Currently, the 16-man squad camping at La Palisse Nyandungu is under-going two daily sessions at Amahoro.
Rwanda, making a second appearance in the event has set their sights at a top eight finish.
“We all the preparations we have had, anything short of a top eight finish will be below par,” Eric Kalisa, the president of the local basketball governing body (Ferwaba) stated.

RWANDA, seeded in Group D alongside Cape Verde, Morocco and Tunisia will intensify their preparations with a two-week training camp in Italy.

Reigning champions Angola are still favorites to retain the title. The team lifted their ninth title in 2007 after beating Cameroon in the final.