Al Ahly v Smouha SC, a clash between Egyptians seeking continental dominance

CAIRO (Egypt) - The moment Egypt fans have been waiting for has finally arrived as Al Ahly on Sunday host Smouha Sporting Club for the first-leg of ELITE 8 of the FIBA Africa Basketball League 2019.

And although Al Ahly enjoy an impressive historic in local Super League compared to Smouha SC, things look rather different at FIBA Africa Basketball League campaign.

Last October, Al Alhy beat Smouha SC in the regional FIBA Africa Zone 5 qualifier in Tanzania.

 With three wins in as many games, Smouha SC topped Group D in Madagascar, while Al Ahly started their continental campaign facing ups and downs, which resulted in a 2-1 mark.

In order to maintain their expectations of winning a continental trophy for the first time since 2016, when they played as hosts of the FIBA Africa Champions Cup, the Cairo-based team will need to find answers to stop Smouha SC's effective offense.

 Led by electrifying guard James Justice and Augustine Okosun, Smouha lead all teams in scoring with an average of 92 points per game, they lead all ELITE 8 teams with 53.7 rebounds per game, and more importantly, Smouha record the third highest Field Goal shooting percentage (46) compared to Al Ahly's 39.6 per cent.

Just like they did in the Group Phase, Al Ahly will need Reginald Holmes and Tedd O'Brien at their very best level.

How to watch Al Ahly v Smouha Sporting Club?

Tune in to FIBA's Youtube Channel on Sunday, March 24th 18:00 GMT +2.

What's at stake?

This is a two-game series with Smouha SC hosting  Al Alhy on April 7th in Alexandria. The winner of the series advance to the FIBA Africa Basketball League 2019 FINAL FOUR.

FIBA