The Leopards snap the Jaguars’ four-game winning streak in a trade of baskets.

By A.A Johnson | April 19, 2025 | 9:58 PM EAT

Coming off an undefeated 4-0 road trip, the Lady Jaguars returned and faced off against the KCCA Leopards, who have won 4 of their last 5 games. With two hot teams, it was KCCA that snapped the Jaguars’ winning streak as they lost 68-67.

Brenda Kayaga led the way for the Jaguars with 19 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist on 8-15 shooting, but it wasn’t enough to stop the KCCA Leopards, as Susan Rebecca led KCCA with 16 points on 6-11 shooting. Perus and Margaret contributed 10 points and 12 points, respectively. On the Jaguars’ side, Mary Priscilla and Sarah Ageno recorded 13 points and 11 points, respectively. As you can see, the digits were close or even higher, but where did the difference come from, and how was KCCA able to squeeze out this win with Shakira not all out?

This is the first time this season that we trailed and played catch-up basketball, the first time we trailed throughout all quarters, and the first time we lost a game this season.

For starters, KCCA out-rebounded us with over 52 rebounds compared to our 44 rebounds.

Our three-point shooting was the lowest since we started the season. We shot only 5-34 from deep—the lowest we have shot since the season began. And again, this is a problem I pointed out in my previous blog: how we don’t replicate our ability and capacity to shoot, despite the fact that we have shooters all over the floor. Anyway, let’s take a close look at how the game transpired from quarter one.

The Js’ scoring started with one of the best steals by Sarah Ageno, who made an easy jump shot. Uwineza Ninette then responded for the KCCA team, and for a moment, there was a trade of baskets until 6:40 when the scoreboard read 6-5. KCCA went ahead to make an 11-0 run until Sandra and Rhoda combined for 3 points to end the quarter 9-16.The Lady Jaguars shot 0-7 from three in the quarter, and it really slowed their offense down.

The second quarter began ice cold as both teams took 4 minutes to score a basket. Brenda led the quarter for the Jaguars with 8 points, including the team’s first 3-pointer from her alone. But KCCA never let them come closer, as they played good defense. Susan Rebecca and Margaret Baagala kept the KCCA offense alive. KCCA maintained the 7-point gap from the first quarter, ending the second with 25-32. The Jaguars’ shooting woes continued as they finished the half shooting 33.3% from the field and 28.6% from three. Mary Priscilla especially struggled as she only scored 2 points on 1-6 shooting.

The third quarter was a simple trade of baskets. Both teams scored 14 points. It means no defense was present to stop KCCA from firing. Inasmuch as the Lady Jaguars stepped up their scoring ability, they failed to make a stop on Margaret Baagala and the entire squad. Every time we made a basket, KCCA answered it with joy and love. We only made 1-10 from the three-point line. That was only 10% from deep. KCCA, however, was 1-3 from the three-point line in this quarter, which is a better 33.3%. Still, the quarter ended with a 7-point gap, with the scoreboard reading 39-46.

The fourth quarter began with Rhoda being fouled, sending her to the free-throw line, which she made to bring the score to 41-46. But again, Margaret Baagala responded, and the same cycle continued. However, we improved from the other quarters, making 28 points in this quarter. Brenda really woke up by this time to nail 7 points, while Mary Priscilla made 6 points in the quarter. Still, Margaret Baagala was the answer for KCCA with 7 points in the quarter. Frustration started to boil midway through the quarter on the JT Jaguars’ sideline, as Rhoda was given an unsportsmanlike foul instead of a normal foul call. Obviously, after such a call, out of provocation, she made a gesture that sent her out of the game with a technical.

KCCA had 68 points until Sarah Ageno made a 3-point shot to make it a one-point deficit, but with only 2.8 seconds on the clock, that was when the Jaguars waved the white flag and put in the “stay ready” players—ending their 4-game winning streak.

The Lady Jaguars’ next game is on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, where they face off against the UCU Lady Canons.