BRAZZAVILLE (Republic of Congo) - FAP found themselves on the ropes twice, but fought back both times to stay in a game that they eventually won against DR Congo's Onatra, with a final score of 72-64.
This was the first game of the 2027 Road to BAL campaign to go into overtime.
First, with 26 seconds left, Josue Ekani could have sealed FAP's victory from the free-throw line, but he only sank one of his two shots, sending the game into the first overtime with the score tied at 49–49.
Onatra felt they had the game in the bag, but then FAP's Bill Foledou hit a three-pointer to send the game into a second overtime at 60–60.
Exhaustion, perhaps due to Onatra's efforts, or perhaps due to FAP's resilience, turned out to be the biggest difference between the teams, as the Cameroonian champions ultimately outscored their opponents 12–4 to secure their first win in Group C of the 2027 Road to BAL.
Noe Cuma of Onatra led all players in scoring, finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds; his teammate André Bonazebi added 6 points and 13 rebounds. However, this was not enough to avoid defeat.
Meanwhile, Boris Kouandjo came off the bench to rewrite the narrative of the game in his own terms.
He led FAP in scoring with 14 points and contributed 5 rebounds, while his teammate Yann Fondou came up with 13 points and 8 rebounds.
In a game where neither team shot impressively from the floor, finishing with 37% (FAP) and 32% (Onatra) respectively, the defining moment that cost Onatra the game was this particular detail: FAP scored 21 points off Onatra's 20 turnovers.
Another factor that contributed to FAP's victory was their bench, which outscored Onatra's 43–14.
Both teams will resume their 2027 Road to BAL campaigns on Sunday. FAP will play Gabon's Espoir Basket Club, and Onatra will play the host team, Avenir du Rail.
FIBA