Dominant Equity silence Vijana Queens in Zone Five opener

Grace Malu dropped 17 points as Equity Bank Hawks beat Tanzania champions Vijana Queens 98-66 to get their Africa Women Basketball League (AWBL) campaign off to a positive start.

Under the tutelage of Benson Oluoch, the Kenyan side is looking to get to the final of the Zone Five championship that serves as a qualifier to AWBL set for December in Egypt.

The bankers had a comfortable start, going 15-08 ahead in the opening five minutes before taking the quarter 25-15. Oluoch’s charges maintained the advantage despite the Tanzanians taking the game to them for an 18-17 score line in the second stanza.

Starting the second half with an 11-point advantage, the Kenyan side were relentless, going 26-16 and 29-18 for the win. Five players, including Malu, managed double digits in points, skipper Melissa Otieno and Betty Kananu playing for 13 each as Mary Lisa Omondi and Valarie Kemunto added 11 and 10 respectively.

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Vijana Queens' Tumaini Ndosi has a spectacular game, bagging the only double-double in the clash with 28 points and 13 rebounds but her efforts were not complimented by her teammates as none hit double digits. 

The Kenyan side dominated all fronts, scoring 31 points from turnovers against Vijana's 12, 29 second chance points against 15, 24 for 17 on fast breaks and 38 for 13 off the bench.