Nigeria Among 11 Countries to Compete in Basketball Africa League in Egypt
OpenLife Nigeria reports that the Basketball Africa League (BAL), Thursday, announced the 52 players from 11 countries across Africa, Europe and the U.S that will compete in the 2024 Basketball Africa League’s (BAL) Nile Conference group phase.
The competition will take place from Friday, April 19 – Saturday, April 27 at the Hassan Mostafa Indoor Sports Complex in Cairo, Egypt.
The four teams competing in the Nile Conference group phase feature seven players with NBA and NBA G League experience, 17 former NCAA Division I players, four current NBA Academy Africa prospects, two NBA Academy Africa graduates, six former Basketball Without Borders (BWB) campers, nine players who have participated in the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and 28 players with FIBA AfroBasket experience.
The participating countries are Teams A.S. DOUANES (SENEGAL),APR (RWANDA), AL AHLY (EGYPT),AL AHLY LY (LIBYA) and BANGUI SC (CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC).
Others are CAPE TOWN TIGERS (SOUTH AFRICA),CITY OILERS (UGANDA), DYNAMO BBC (BURUNDI) and FUS DE RABAT (MOROCCO).
The list includes PETRO DE LUANDA (ANGOLA),RIVERS HOOPERS (NIGERIA) and U.S. MONASTIR (TUNISIA)
For Rivers Hoopers, nicknamed “The King’s Men,” the Nigerian team among the competing teams, it is a team-based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria.
Founded in 2005, Rivers Hoopers was initially called Royal Hoopers when it came into existence but the name was changed in March 2016 by the Rivers State Government who took over the management of the club. This was done on their return to the top division after being relegated for one season.
Since 2005, the team has hosted annual “classics” tournaments before officially participating in the Nigerian Premier Basketball League in 2009. The team is a three-time league champion, including back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012,
Rivers Hoopers is coached by a former national team player, Ogoh Odaudu.
Meanwhile, the opening game of the Nile Conference group phase will feature first-time BAL participants Al Ahly Ly (Libya) and Bangui Sporting Club (Central African Republic) facing off at 4:00 p.m. local time / 10:00 a.m. ET. In the second game, home team and defending BAL champion Al Ahly (Egypt) will begin its title defense against two-time BAL participant City Oilers (Uganda) at 7:00 p.m. local time / 1:00 p.m. ET.
Following the Nile Conference, the 2024 BAL season will continue with the Sahara Conference group phase, which will take place from Saturday, May 4 – Sunday, May 12 at the Dakar Arena in Dakar, Senegal, and feature 2022 BAL champion US Monastir (Tunisia), home team and 2023 BAL runner-up AS Douanes (Senegal), 2021 BAL participant Rivers Hoopers (Nigeria), and first-time BAL participant Armée Patriotique Rwandaise Basketball (APR; Rwanda).
About Author
