The Rwanda Basketball League (RBL) enters its thrilling playoff stage this Friday, June 20, as the top four teams APR, REG, UGB and Patriots battle for the coveted 2025 championship title.
After five intense months of regular season action, the top four teams now clash in a high-stakes playoff battle for the title.
APR, the reigning champions and 15-time winners, return home after finishing third at the 2025 BAL.
The army side finished the regular season at the top of the standings with a dominant 15-1 record and will face familiar rivals Patriots in a best-of-five semifinal series starting at 8:30 PM local time on Friday at BK Arena.
Patriots, the only team to defeat APR this season, are out for revenge after losing 4-2 to them in last year’s finals.
The fourth-seeded team has bolstered its roster with the addition of American forward Raphael Putney, who played for Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers in BAL 2025.
Putney complements the earlier acquisition of American guard Joel Kindred, who joined the team two months ago. Together with scoring leader Cole Elliott Lamar, they aim to put an end to APR’s recent dominance.
In the other semifinal matchup, second-seeded REG will take on third-seeded UGB.
REG, the 2022 league champions, are led by BAL 2025 MVP Jean Jacques Boissy. They finished the regular season with an 11-5 record but dropped their final two games, including one against UGB.
The team will be boosted by the return of star guard Cleveland Thomas, who is coming back from a long-term injury.
UGB, the only team among the four never to have won the league, are this season’s dark horse.
Finishing the regular season with a 10-6 record, they ended with a six-game winning streak, building crucial momentum heading into the playoffs.
This season’s signings Mouhamed Doumbya and James Amotoe have been instrumental in their success, while Perriere Steven has anchored the defense impressively.
The REG vs. UGB series will tip off at 6:00 PM on Friday.
Interestingly, none of the league leaders in scoring, rebounding, assists, or blocks from the regular season will feature in the postseason, adding a unique twist to this year’s playoffs.
With the final roster adjustments made, all four teams enter the playoffs in peak condition.
The winners of the semifinals will advance to a best-of-seven championship series to determine the 2025 RBL champion, who will go on to represent Rwanda in the 2026 Basketball Africa League, set to conclude in Kigali.
