NAIROBI (Kenya) - Back-to-back hosts of the Road to BAL East Division Elite 16, Nairobi City Thunder have qualified for the premier African men's club competition as champions, having beaten Johannesburg Giants 94–84 in the final.
Coached by Bradley Ibs, the two-time Kenyan champions secured their place in next year's Basketball Africa League (BAL) on Saturday with a victory over Mozambique's Ferroviario da Beira.
They then led from start to finish in Sunday's final, repeating their 2024 feat at the same venue, the Kasarani Indoor Gymnasium.
For the second match in a row, the 5,000-capacity venue was filled to capacity, with fans rallying the home side as the South Africans mounted a comeback.
Emotions ran high in the final period as the Giants played the last minute without their coach, Florsheim Ngwenya, who had been given his marching orders, while the team fought to overturn the result.
The Giants cut a 22-point deficit in the second quarter to mount a comeback in the second half.
They came to within nine points at 91–82 off a three from Nkosinathi Sandile Sibanyoni with 2:48 left to play.
The Kenyan champions were in real danger, but the ensuing minutes saw a mix of turnovers and missed chances. The hosts retained their lead to secure victory.
Captain Tyler Ongwae and centre Ater Majok led the team's performance with 17 points and four rebounds apiece, while Albert Odero added 14 points.
However, Eugene Adera's contribution could not be ignored, as he led the team with 12 rebounds and came two assists shy of a double-double.
The game got off to an 11–2 Thunder lead. The hosts took the stanza 28–17, as the Giants recovered from their slow start to put up a fight. Five minutes into the second quarter, the Thunder had extended their lead to 45–25, but the South Africans kept going and trailed by 12 (50–38) at halftime.
The hosts' eight treys in the third quarter pushed them to a 33-23 lead, restoring their advantage to 22 points (83-61) — their biggest so far. However, Ngabo Kasilembo started the final quarter with a fast break, and the Giants pushed hard for a 23–11 quarter. Unfortunately, this was too little, too late for a win.
'I thought we played poorly, especially in the opening quarter, and that has been our Achilles heel. Today it may have been because we had already qualified. We didn't stick to our defence, but that doesn't take away from their shooting. They shot over 50 per cent from deep, which is very impressive. We were a bit lethargic, and by the time we started pushing in the second half, it wasn't enough," said Johannesburg Giants head coach Florsheim Ngwenya.
"It is great to keep a clean slate to be back in the BAL and beat a great team twice. The fans made the experience electric. Both teams really wanted to win and it was an exciting final. There was little difference between the group and final match. We had significant leads but they kept fighting, but we kept to our plan for win," NCT headd coach Bradley Ibs
FIBA