NAIROBI (Kenya) – Four teams, two places!
The Elite 16 Eastern Division is in for the most important matches of the six-day competition, with hosts Nairobi City Thunder, Uganda’s City Oilers, Urunani of Burundi and Kriol Star of Cape Verde in contention.
Urunani, who is on a 7-0 Road to BAL run, takes on Kriol Star while neighbors Oilers and Thunder face off in the second semi-final. The winners of the semi-finals qualify for the 2025 BAL season.
Urunani, Mamadou Pabi Gueye’s team, who faced Oilers in the final Group B game and overcame a 22-point deficit to win 78-75, hope to continue their momentum in the semi-final when they take on the Islanders by Kriol Star.
The Burundians, who are making their return to the Road to BAL since their elimination in the semi-finals of the Elite 16 in 2022, have been uncompromising since the group stage.
Urunani won against the Tanzanians of JKT (83-60), the Seychellois of Beau Vallon Heat (112-43), Nairobi City Thunder (89-88) and the Malagasy of GNBC (112-56) to qualify for this phase where they continued to impress.
Urunani holds off City Oilers to remain undefeated.
They picked up where they left off: 87-34 against Matero Magic; 70-61 against Fox Basketball before beating Oilers 78-75, in a highly anticipated duel which kept all its promises.
“I have every confidence in my team for the semi-final. We reached this stage last time, but this year I think we will qualify. We have to work hard on both ends of the pitch to get through,” said Landry Ndikumana, from Urunani.
On the other hand, after a 100-77 defeat against eventual winner Al Ahly Tripoli and a close 81-76 defeat against another BAL team, Stade Malien, during the group stage in the West Division, hosted in Libya, the Kriol was eliminated, but a wild card a few days before the Elite 16 in the Eastern Division gave him a breath of fresh air.
Kriol Star is not only the first Cape Verdean team to participate in the Road to BAL, they are also aiming for a first participation in the BAL.
A first Road to BAL victory, 89-58, against the Bravehearts of Malawi, followed by a 104-71 defeat against the Nairobi City Thunder, and a 63-58 victory against the MBB Blue Soldiers of South Africa , secured the Islanders a place in one of the division’s two deciding matches.
“In this competition you can’t underestimate anyone. In the end, we wanted more than them. But this is just one step towards qualification. We have to stay motivated and prepare for the next match , which will take place against a difficult opponent who remains on an unbeaten streak. Winning the last group game has boosted our morale and we are now in a position to make history for ourselves and for basketball. Cape Verde,” said Joel Almeida.
The second semi-final pits the only team with previous BAL experience, City Oilers, against debutants and hosts Nairobi City Thunder who remain undefeated after the group stage.
Andrew Tendo’s Oilers are looking to qualify for a third time, while Bradley Ibs’ men want to make Kenyan history by becoming the first team from that country to qualify for Africa’s premier men’s club competition.
Will Nairobi Thunder become the first Kenyan team to qualify for the BAL?
“We have to be consistent on both ends of the pitch. We can’t afford to have a drop in energy or concentration because in tournaments like this a team can have good results at the start, but a bad one match and it’s elimination It’s more mental for us to know how to approach the semi-finals and we have to do it like we’re starting the tournament from scratch,” said Tendo, whose team went straight. qualified for the Elite 16.
For his part, Ibs, whose team was tested by the Bravehearts on Sunday evening, declares that, even a 3-0 series in the group stage remains a good operation, his protégés did not play at their best level.
The team entered the Road to BAL with a bang, going 3-1 in the group stage. Their only defeat was conceded to Urunani with a score of 89-88.
The Thunder won their first two matches in the Elite 16, a 102-59 triumph over MBB and a 104-71 victory over Kriol Star, before winning 91-68 against the Malawians.
Uganda champions City Oilers are the only semi-finalists to have previously participated in the BAL.
“We were a little lethargic in the last match, which obviously we can’t do in the semi-final. We’ll fix that by trying to be a little more focused going into the semi-final match. We have a strong team that showed its ability to win, fielding two different teams, and they all gave the best of themselves, which is really good,” said coach Ibs.
The winners of these semi-finals will join Al Ahli Tripoli and Stade Malien, who secured the two West Division tickets for the 2025 BAL season.
Stay connected to the competition website for all the news.
FIBA
