Nigeria's Rivers Hoopers secure BAL ticket

LAGOS (Nigeria) - Rivers Hoopers will represent Nigeria in the upcoming inaugural Basketball Africa League scheduled to tipoff in March 2020. 

The Port Harcourt based side were crowned the Nigeria Basketball Federation President Cup winners following a resounding 97-57 victory over Raptors of Lagos at the National Indoor Stadium in Lagos. 

The Hoopers return to a major African competition for a second consecutive season after they reached the Preliminary Round of the FIBA AfroLeague last year.

"I CANNOT FIND THE RIGHT WORDS. ALL IN ALL I THANK GOD. EVERYTHING WORKED TOGETHER FOR US. WE ARE VERY HAPPY AND PROUD TO HAVE WON THIS CHAMPIONSHIP AND A CHANCE TO RETURN TO THE CONTINENT,"- Odaudu

Benjamin Ikechukwu scored 20 points on a night that the team under head coach Ogoh Odaudu got everything right.

Odaudu said after the game that, "I do not know the words to use to categorize how I feel right now. I cannot find the right words. All in all I thank God everything worked together for us. We are very happy and proud to have won this championship and a chance to return to the continent."

The duo of Anthony Koko and Solomon Ajegbeyi scored 15 and 11 points in that order to inspire their side to a well deserved victory. 

Rivers Hooper’s Abdul Yahaya walked away with the Most Valuable Player award as well as a place in the competition’s best five players of the tournament alongside Godwin David (Kwara Falcons), Gabriel Erameh (Niger Potters), Ginikachukwu Godspower (Raptors) and Ikechukwu Benjamin (Rivers Hoopers).

Innocent Ebuka of Raptors was named as the highest rebounder of the competition while Victor Anthony emerged as the highest blocked shots winner.

Mustapha Oyebanji (Kwara Falcons) emerged highest scorer of the competition while the highest three points award went to Ginikachukwu Godpower (Raptors).

Kwara Falcons finished in Third-Place after edging Niger Potters 78-77 in a very closely contested encounter.

With this trophy, Rivers Hoopers have now won three straight national championship titles and with that have booked a place in the final 12-team competition that is set to change the face of African basketball. 

Rivers Hoopers join AS Sale (Morocco), Zamalek (Egypt), US Monastir (Tunisia), Petro Atletico de Luanda (Angola) and AS Douanes (Senegal) as the six teams that have automatically qualified.

The other six slots will be occupied by the top three teams from the two groups that will take part in the final qualification tournaments set to take place in Kigali, Rwanda and Yaounde, Cameroon in December. 

FIBA