FOUR-TIME Nigeria Basketball League champions, Rivers Hoopers, defeated Spintex Knights 74-56 in the final of the Louis Edem Invitational Basketball Championship to be crowned champions.
The Knights have now been beaten by Hoopers three times in a row. The first edition of the Louis Edem tournament in February this year and twice this week.
Mustapha Oyebanji, who was awarded the most valuable player, shot 16 points, including four three-pointers, in the final.
Oyebanji dropped back-to-back threes at the start of the first quarter, followed by two foul throws by Michael Daramola, as the KingsMen made an 8-0 run.
The former Kwara Falcons guard scored a basket after a 3-minute scoreless run by Hoopers in the third quarter, but it was the Ghanians who had the better offense in the third as they outscored Hoopers 12-9 to cut the gap to 8 going into the fourth.
Rivers Hoopers shot a 14-2 run in the last 4 minutes of the game to emerge champions of the tournament.
Victor Mohammed and Abel Offia both combined for 18 points in the game.
In addition to Oyebanji, who was crowned the MVP, Offia won the three-point shooting contest.
Rivers Hoopers won the tournament without a defeat, finishing with a 6-0 mark to end a 3-tournament losing streak.
They failed to win the Sam Oguche, NBBF Final 8 or the Louis Edem Invitational tournaments. The last time they won a tournament was in February last year at the Crown Elite Championship.
Head coach of the Rivers Hoopers, Ogoh Odaudu, said,”It feels good. I feel very good right now to win a tournament after losing three tournaments. I just hope it continues, and the only way we are going to do that is to go back and work hard so that when next we come, it will be easier than this.”
