On a career night in the BAL, Pieter Prinsloo delivered a dominant performance with 30 points and 11 rebounds to lead Made by Basketball (MBB, South Africa) to a thrilling 75-74 comeback victory over Nairobi City Thunder (Kenya) on Tuesday afternoon at BK Arena in Kigali, as the Nile Conference resumed.
Teafale Lenard Jr. chipped in with 20 points, six rebounds, and five assists, while Robinson Opong buried a dramatic three-pointer—his second of the game—with just over three seconds remaining to seal the win for head coach Sam Vincent’s side. MBB erased an 18-point second-half deficit to secure their first win of the tournament (1-2), keeping their hopes alive for a spot in the BAL Playoffs and Finals set for Pretoria from June 6 to 14.
The Thunder, who remain winless (0-3), were led by Evans Ganapamo with 21 points and Tylor Ongwae with 20, but struggled offensively, shooting just 36 percent from the field and faltering late in the fourth quarter.
In the second game of the day, Al Ahli Tripoli (Libya) cruised to a 90-68 win over APR (Rwanda), becoming the only undefeated team in the Nile Conference. Jean Jacques Boissy and Naseim Badrush combined for 52 points, 11 rebounds, and six steals to lead the Libyan side to a 3-0 record.
APR, who were without star forward Aliou Diarra due to injury, suffered their first loss of the competition and now sit at 2-1. Obadiah Noel and Chasson Randle scored 18 points apiece for the Rwandan hosts.
The BAL action continues Thursday at BK Arena:
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Al Ahli Tripoli vs. Nairobi City Thunder – 4 p.m. CAT
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APR vs. Made by Basketball – 7 p.m. CAT
