Strathmore Blades see off ANU Wolfpacks as Thunder stop Umoja

Thunder's Jerry Andare (left) and Ken Dwallo of Strathmore University in a past KBF Premier League Play-off match at Nyayo Gymnasium, in January. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

Strathmore University Blades beat African Nazarene University (ANU) 64-47 in a Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) Men’s Premier League match played yesterday at the Nyayo Gymnasium.

Former Nairobi City Thunder point guard David Etyang was the star of the match, scoring 18 points to guide Blades to their third win of the season.

Etyang, who featured for the league champions in the 2025 road to Basketball Africa League (BAL) Elite 16 East Division, was the only Strathmore player to hit the double digits.

Patrick Githura was the side's second top scorer with nine points, while the trio of Francis Sinyakwa, Simon Ayuel, and Jordi Handa scored eight points apiece. Victor Mwaka and captain Justine Opiyo led the Wolfpacks with 11 points each.  

Blades made their intentions to bag maximum points known in the first quarter as they controlled the pace, dominating the paint and tactically defending to take a 23-14 lead. They continued to call the shots in the second period even as ANU tightened their defence, restricting their offensive play, but Blades outlived them to take it 14-10 for a 13-point half-time advantage.

On resumption, Wolfpacks who were seeking to get out of the relegation zone matched Blades, forcing the third quarter to end in an even score of 14 points. However, their effort was not good enough to salvage the game, as they allowed Strathmore to take the final quarter 13-9 and subject them to their second defeat of the season.

Today, they will be hoping to recover from the loss and chalk up their third win when they tackle defending champions Thunder, who are yet to taste defeat for a third season running.

On Thursday night, Thunder extended their dominance over rivals Umoja Basketball Club to maintain their flawless run. Thunder secured a 78-66 win in a game that Umoja almost turned the tables in the fourth quarter. Umoja’s Joel Ntambwe was on fire, sinking a towering 34 points but watched helplessly as his effort went up in flames.

While Ntambwe seemed to run a one-man show for Umoja, teamwork paid off for Thunder, who had most of their players contribute to the win.

Derrick Ogechi led the champions with 15 points, with Garang Diing and Ariel Okal adding 12 points each. Eugine Adera also hit the double-digit mark with 11.

A solid start won the match for Thunder as it left little room for Umoja to recover despite their spirited fight in the fourth quarter. Thunder took the first quarter 23-11 and then stretched it to 42-26 at halftime. They also dominated the third period, scoring 23 points against Umoja’s 16 to create an unattainable margin. Umoja were the better side in the final period, taking it 24-13, but it was a little too late to save themselves from a third defeat.  

In the women’s Premier League contest, former champions Equity Bank Hawks beat Zetech University Sparks 62-46 to chalk their fifth win. Melissa Akinyi led the banker with 12 points, whereas Sparks’ Marsha Roseline led the scores with 20.