Giants and Beira advance to the Elite 16, Bravehearts and Magic set to battle it out for third-place in Group E

LUSAKA (Zambia) - With their 4-0 records, Johannesburg Giants and Ferroviario da Beira have proven to be the hottest teams in the 2026 Road to BAL Division East Group E, and both sides are through to the Elite 16. The Bravehearts and the hosts, Matero Magic, are tied at 2–2 ahead of their decisive meeting on Saturday, which will determine the group's third-place team.

All matches took place on Friday at the Nasdec Arena in Lusaka.

Find below how things unfolded in the Zambian capital.

Giants take the magic out of Matero

The Giants dominated from start to finish, dismantling Matero 84-62 and putting themselves on course for a spot in the Elite 16.

Six Giants players scored in double figures, with Joshua Ozabor leading the team with 19 points.

Nino Dim recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Nathi Sibanyoni recorded a double-double with 11 points and 18 rebounds. Meanwhile, Aviwe Mahlong, Pieter Prinsloo and Lehlogonolo Tholo helped the Giants pile up the points for the win with 14, 14 and 10 points respectively.

The only Matero Magic to scored in double figures, Jacob Mushinge put in a respectable shift , finishing with a game-high of 24 points.

The game was effectively over by the first half as the Giants went for break with a 51-20 lead. The host club appeared to have run out of energy following their overtime victory against the Basket Hounds the previous night, and the Giants seized the opportunity to dominate from start to finish.

Bravehearts keep their Elite 16 hopes alive

Both teams had suffered tough losses the previous day: the Bravehearts had fallen short against Beira, while the Basket Hounds had lost in overtime to Matero.

When the two sides clashed on Friday 31 October, the Bravehearts were able to shrug off the psychological effects of their defeat, blowing out the Hounds 82–60 to make it 2–2.

With 23 points from 8/13 shooting from the field, Ian Limbe and Kirk Smith's 22 points from 9/15 shooting put the Bravehearts in a position to return to the Elite 16.

The Hounds were led in scoring by Kamani Morris with 13 points. His teammates, Clayton Chikwengo, Tanaka Ndyara and Mike Banda, contributed 12, 11 and 10 points respectively, but this was not enough to help the Zimbabwean club.

Beira's fourth-quarter charge leads them to victory

An inspired performance in the fourth quarter saw Ferroviario maintain their unbeaten run. After a sluggish start, Beira recovered to win 82–70 against the Dolphins Basketball Club. This victory could see Beira qualify for the Elite 16.

Forward Ayad Munguambe recorded consecutive double-doubles (21 points and 10 rebounds), while his teammate Joshua Thomas contributed 20 points and seven assists.

Another veteran forward, Helton Ubisse, joined the double-double club, scoring 13 points and grabbing 16 rebounds for Beira. Ke' Tarrious Bouchum added 15 points as the Locomotivas secured the all-important victory.

Sisco Ngaiza of the Dolphins had a game-high 24 points and 16 rebounds, while team captain Kesaobaka Ndawanyana scored 15 points.

Beira trailed Dolphins for most of the game and, early in the third quarter, were 10 points behind (44–34).

However, they cut the Dolphins' lead to six (64–58) going into the fourth quarter.

With so much at stake, the Mozambican club increased their tempo in the fourth quarter, taking the lead (72–67), and Beira eventually won by 12 points.

Group E Standings after Game-day 4 in Lusaka (October 31)

*This news report has been updated since it was first published.

FIBA