Basketball in Africa

New signing Salim Ali will not let Heaters get relegated from the MTN-Fuba League men’s Division One without a fight. Ali scored game-high 31 points and 10 assists to give giants Kyambogo Warriors a huge scare before the championship contenders won 75-66. The Nkumba Marines guard epitomised the spirit of a team that has won only two games this season and still face a tall order to survive the drop.

Heaters matched Warriors for a large portion of the game only for the former champions’ snatch it in the final session 31-22. They had edged the first quarter 18-16 and the third 15-12 but Heaters claimed the second 16-12.