YAOUNDE (Cameroon) - Six teams representing six countries are set to do battle for the last three tickets available for the second edition of the Basketball Africa League (BAL).

From Saturday, December 11 until Thursday, December 16, Cameroon's capital city of Yaounde will turn into a battle ground where AS Police (Mali), Espoir Fukash (DR Congo), F.A.P (Cameroon),Nigelec BC (Niger), S.L.A.C (Guinea) and S.O. A (Cote d'Ivoire) will try to join the BAL, the 12-team royalty of clubs basketball in Africa. 

Following the withdrawal of Republic of Benin's ASPAC and the unavailability of Morocco's AS Sale,  the West Division Elite 16 Round will consist of six teams that will be split into two groups (G1 and G2) of three teams each.

F.A.P edged Nigelec in the 2019 BAL qualifiers

With the exception of Espoir Fukash, the remaining five teams are familiar to the Elite 16 Round, although only AS Police and FAP made it to the BAL Final Round last year.

Reaching the BAL Final Round has become the ultimate goal for basketball clubs on the continent, and it comes as no surprise that teams competing in the Elite 16 teams have invested heavily to improve the quality of their rosters.

Cote d'Ivoire champions S.O.A, who have been drawn in the so-called 'Group of Death' alongside F.A.P and AS Police, have recruited American Da'quan Cook and seven-footer Serbia Dragan Tubak.

S.O.A head coach Coulibaly Christian Larry, described his team as "a solid group, based on the collective." He said that he's aware of the challenge that his team will face in Yaounde. "We are going to work hard and we are committed to being the first Ivorian team to qualify for the BAL."

Quarter-Finalist in the first BAL season and with an eye in season 2,  F.A.P have signed Cape Verde sharpshooter Joel Almeida, Jamaican Anthony Allen, Chad international player Ronald Kolmia and American Ten Lylle. 

Another example of rosters' improvement came from AS Police, who signed Stephane Konate, who most recently helped Cote d'Ivoire close the first window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African Qualifiers in Angola with a respectable 3-0 in Group C.

The Yaounde Elite 16 Round follows the Division East that saw Ferroviario da Beira (Mozambique), and Cobra Sports (South Sudan) reach the Final, and qualification to the BAL while, Cape Town Tigers and New Star will compete for the last tickets to the BAL. 

The second season of the BAL will will expand to a total of 38 games taking place in three cities (Dakar, Egypt and Rwanda) over three months in 2022.

All Elite 16 West Division games will be live streamed on FIBA's Youtube Channel. 

FIBA