BAMAKO (Mali) – Centre Federal de Guinée (CFG) bounced back from their opening day loss to Al-Ahly Benghazi with a narrow 66-61 victory over Burkina Faso champions AS Douanes, while Al-Ahly Benghazi of Libya overcame Mali's CRBT 77-66.
Here's a review of the Group A action on Saturday.
Kaba rises to the occasion for Centre Federal de Guinée
Kabinet Kaba put on a show for the Guinean champions.
The 22-year-old inspired his team at both ends of the court, finishing with 16 points, 17 rebounds and two assists in 34 minutes and 56 seconds.
Teammate Zakaria Quattara joined him, erupting for a game-high 16 points and six rebounds, while Mamadou Kaba left his mark off the bench with 12 points and eight rebounds. These efforts helped Centre Federal Guinee improve to 1-1 with one Group A game remaining on Sunday.
Franck Ouedraogo led the way for AS Douanes with 14 points and five rebounds after a quiet performance in Friday's 63-54 loss against Centre de Référence de Basketball de Tombouctou.
However, his efforts were not enough to avoid the Burkinabe champions' second straight loss.
Centre Federal Guinee head coach Lancinet Keita Kabassan praised his players' efforts. He said: 'We are happy with the win, and we hope to win again tomorrow. To qualify for the Basketball Africa League, you have to win two games, and that's what we're aiming to do tomorrow. I am proud of my players because we lost two of them to fouls, but they fought until the end.”
ASD coach Kogdoub Yameogo admitted that his team lost to a stronger opponent. 'We've had the same issue since yesterday. Because of the lack of preparation, we are not physically ready. The game is balanced and either team could win today. We know we are out of the competition, but we are focusing on tomorrow's game. We have to win before we go back.”
Benghazi shut down home team
In Saturday's highly anticipated Group A clash between Al Ahly Benghazi and hosts Centre de Référence de Basketball de Tombouctou, the former emerged victorious.
The Libyan champions, who finished second in the 2024 BAL season, improved to 2–0 thanks to their 77–66 win over a determined CRBT side, who dropped to 1–1.
For the second day running, Libyan international Sofian Hamad disrupted the hosts with 18 points and 7 rebounds.
Four other players — Derek Cooke Jr. (14 points), Mohamed Sadi (13 points), Adrees Zeew (11 points) and Branden Frazier — also scored doubles to secure the win.
Though the Senegalese player Samba Fall came up with a game-high double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds, it wasn't the hosts' day.
FIBA