Jordan's 3-point stun Bangui in the first overtime game of this year's Elite 16
it's taken Rabat only one shot to tie the game when they needed it most and another shot that completely changed the game to secure a win that sees them top Group B with a game left.
YAOUNDE (Cameroon) – FUS Rabat claimed a nail-biting 90-89 overtime win over Bangui Sporting Club to remain perfect in the Elite 16 Division West.
Buoyed by sheer determination not to let the game slip by them, the Moroccan champions stayed confident to snatch the win from Bangui SC, who had a good run from the start of the game cruising to a 23-17 win in the first quarter of the game.
It was the first game in this year's Elite 16 to go into overtime.
Jonathan Jordan was for the second day running the architect of FUS Rabat's win with 28 points. He was 6-for-11 from the free-throw line and 4-for-9 from the three-point line and was joined by the experienced Soufiane Benhmine who added 17 points and Aliou Diarra with 15 points.
Despite Alex Higgins' 11 points and Evans Ganapamo's 20 points their effort were not enough to see them overcome FUS Rabat.
Jimmy Djimrabaye on his part had his first double-double in the qualifiers, finishing with points and 11 rebounds, but the night belonged to Rabat.
Jonathan Jordan
TURNING POINT: Bangui head coach Liz Mills admitted, in the post-game press conference that her team, had three great quarters where they dominated FUS Rabat. But Bangui players and coaching staff were left stunned when Jonathan Jordan hit a three-point that tied the game at 82-82 with two seconds left in the regulation and forced an overtime.
FUS Rabat trailed throughout the four quarters, but when they took the lead in the remaining and decisive five minutes in overtime, they looked never back, and closed the game out with a tremendous victory.
Aliou Diarra made an alley-hoop from a pass by Soufiane Benhmine to 88–86 for FUS to take back the lead, and they never trailed again.
Soufiane made two more free-throws to further FUS Rabat’s lead and a last-second three-point shot from Alex Higgins of Bangui came a bit too late as the final buzzer sounded with score at 90-89 in favour of Rabat.
HEROES: There is no question as to who was the hero of the game was for FUS Rabat. Jordan came up with as man-of-the match performance, finishing with a game-high of 28 points while dishing out six assists.
Soufine Benhmine brought his wealth of experience to bear on the team making decisions that left the opponents worried..
Aliou Diarra
FUS Rabat coach Said El Bouzid may have known Aliou Diarra's historic of fouling out in critic moments, and made sure to sit him for most of the second and third quarter when he picked two early fouls, but when the 2023 BAL Defensive Player of the Year returned to the floor, he made his presence felt in style. Diarra was 6-for-10 from the floor while adding 9 rebounds.
STATS DON'T LIE: While the Moroccan champions were poor from the free-throw line, making just 17 of their 36 shots from the charity stripe, they excelled defensively, forcing Bangui to turn the ball over 20 times, which proved a game-changing for the Moroccan champions.
FUS Rabat improved their Elite 16 record to 2-0 whie Bangui dropped to 1-1
BOTTOM LINE: It may sound a bit of a cliche, but it's fair to say that patience was a virtue for Rabat. Each time they closed the gap, Bangui would find ways to stretch their lead. However, it's taken Rabat only one shot to tie the game when they needed it most and another shot that completely changed the game to secure a win that sees them top Group B with a game left.
It was surely a big morale booster for FUS Rabat before taking on SLAC on Thursday. Bangui SC, on the other hand, now understand that the fight is not over until it is over.
WHAT THEY SAID: "I feel great with this win. It was a tough game. Bangui were good and they were making some tough shots but thank God Jordan brought us back into the game. We were waiting for that and he gave us that opportunity that came with the victory tonight." – Ayoub Nouhi of FUS Rabat.
"I think in the third and fourth quarters, FUS Rabat came back with a bit of fire and especially in the fourth. We made a few mistakes and this is a tough loss for us. We should have wrapped up the game earlier but those mistakes cost us the game." Emmanuel Malou of Bangui SC.
FIBA