Al Ittihad, Rivers Hoopers Advance To BAL Playoffs, Finals In South Africa

Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers defeated Mali’s Stade Malien 79-59 and Egypt’s Al Ittihad beat Morocco’s FUS Rabat 98-74 as the Kalahari Conference concluded in Rabat, Morocco on Sunday night. Raphiael Putney (207-F/C-1990, college: UMass) led the Hoopers with 15 points, with Madut Akec (201-F-1999, college: Detroit) adding 14 points and eight rebounds and Micheal Afuwape (185-PG-1998) recording 13 points and five steals. The Hoopers are ending the Kalahari Conference with four wins and two losses, behind only the conference leaders Al Ittihad (6-0), and advance to the 2025 Basketball Africa League (BAL) Playoffs and Finals which will take place at SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa from June 6-14.
Meanwhile, five Ittihad players scored in double digits, led by Abdelhady Metwaly with 19 points. Anas Mahmoud (214-C-1995, college: Louisville) recorded 10 points and seven rebounds, and Ittihad remain undefeated in the BAL this season. Nisre Zouzoa got hot out of the gate for Rabat, finishing with 22 points, but it was not enough for the Moroccan team to bounce back down the stretch. With two wins and four losses, FUS Rabat finished third in the Kalahari Conference and will be looking closely at what happens in Cairo and Kigali when the conference play continues. More than 28,000 fans attended the games at Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat between April 5 and April 13, which also marked the BAL’s first games in Morocco. In addition to the conference play, the league also held ancillary and community outreach events, including a BAL4Her workshop, a unified game with Special Olympics, Her Time To Play clinic for 100 girls, and more. Halftime entertainment featured Moroccan musicians ElGrandeToto, Lazaro, Vargas, Khtek, Tagne and Stormy. Two-time NBA All-Star Joakim Noah, 2015 NBA champion Festus Ezeli, two-time WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike and former NBA player Pops Mensah Bonsu also attended the games in Morocco. The 2025 BAL conference group phase will continue in Dakar, Senegal (April 26-May 4) and Kigali, Rwanda (May 17-25) next, before the top eight teams travel to Pretoria, South Africa to compete for the 2025 BAL championship.
Courtesy of: capitalfm.co.ke