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REG departed for Senegal Monday night aboard Ethiopian Airlines ahead of the action slated for March 11 -21st.
There are only two teams from East Africa that will play at this year’s Basketball Africa League.
Uganda’s City Oilers qualified for the first time ever while Rwandan champions Rwanda Energy Group (REG) will make a second straight appearance.
The Rwandan side will be the first in action, playing in the Sahara conference in Dakar, Senegal.
The team departed for Senegal Monday night aboard Ethiopian Airlines ahead of the action slated for March 11 -21st.
Defending champions US-Monastir of Tunisia, Nigeria’s Kwara Falcons, Abidjan Basket Club of Côte d'Ivoire, Mali’s Stade Malien and host club AS Douanes are the other teams in the Sahara Conference.
REG will play their opening game of the campaign on Sunday against the Falcons before facing Abidjan Basketball Club on Monday and Douanes on March 15th.
Stade Malien on March 18 and a clash with the champions US-Monastir will wind up the regular season for Dean Murray’s outfit.
REG must be in the top four after the five regular season games to have a chance of playing before the home crowd in Kigali come the playoffs in May.
Teams in each conference will play one another once and the top four will progress to the next round of playoffs which will be played in a knockout format (quarterfinals, semi-finals and finals) in Kigali, Rwanda, from May 21st-27th.
The Rwandan champions finished top of the Sahara Conference last year and were ahead of US-Monastir before a dismal display in the playoffs brought them crashing down.
Newly appointed Murray will be looking to make an impression and left Kigali with a team made of experience.
The addition of forward Delwan Graham to the core that played last year’s competition should give REG more firepower in the continent’s premier club competition.
Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza, eho crossed to rivals APR after last season, is one of the players added to the REG squad alongside Patriots’ duo of Steven Hagumintwari Dieudonne Ndizeye.
Uganda’s Oilers will feature in the Nile Conference that will play at Hassan Mostafa Indoor Sports Complex in Cairo, Egypt, from April 26th to May 6th.
Monastir are the champions having defeated Angola’s Petro de Luanda 83-72 in the final last May.
REG Final Roster
Pascal Niyonkuru
Prince Muhizi
Pitchou Manga
Ntore Habimana
Adonis Filer
Dieudonne Ndizeye
Olivier Shyaka
Steven Hagumintwari
Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza
Cleveland Thomas
Jean de Dieu Umuhoza
Delwan Graham.
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