The 2026 Nigeria Basketball Premier League (NBPL) started on winning notes for the duo of Gboko City Chiefs and Aso Sky Hawks as they rolled over their opponents, Nile University and Niger Potters, respectively, on Monday night, at the Mo Arena, Abuja one of the Savannah Conference centres for the League.
Recall that five teams, Gboko City Chiefs, Aso Sky Hawks, Niger Potters, Nile University and Nigeria Customs are competing for honours in Abuja, which will hold from 17th to 26th May, 2026.
In the first game between Nile University and Gboko City Chiefs, the latter came out smoking, winning the first quarter by 25 points to Nile University’s 15 points.
The Nile University team, however, came out with different tactics in the second and third quarters to overrun their opponent. Combining youthfulness and speed, the Nile boys fought back, winning the second by 23 – 17 points and the third by 29 – 13 points, with the score standing at 67 to 55 points in favour of Nile University at the end of the third quarter.
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The fourth quarter was, however, a different ball game as it brought the best out of the two sides with skill, strength and energy on display, applauded by the crowd who were at the edge of their seats, cheering the two teams. Gboko City Chiefs, at the end, amassed 28 points to Nile’s 15, bringing the total points to a nail-biting finish at 83 points to 82 points in favour of Gboko City.
Speaking after the game, Coach Habib Afodun of Gboko City Chiefs commended his boys for their display. He said the win will galvanise the boys to go into the next game and do better.
He said, “Our mission is to win the League, and that is why we’re doing things the right way so that at the end of the day we can achieve our aim.”
In the second game of the night, Aso Sky Hawks won by 82 – 64 against Niger Potters, winning all four quarters. The first quarter ended 19 -14, the second quarter 17 – 8, third 24 – 22 and the fourth 22 – 20.
Speaking with Sporting Tribune, the coach of the Aso Sky Hawks, Mark Hill, said, “We came out and played championship basketball. We moved the ball around. I’m very proud of the team, the way they played. Our mission is to win this tournament, and we try to do that every day.”
The tournament continues on Tuesday with Nigeria Customs filing out against Gboko City Chiefs, and Nile University square up with Aso Sky Hawks for their first win.
