NAIROBI ( Kenya) - It is down to the most crucial part of the East Division Elite 16 as all eight teams play their final group stage matches on Sunday to determine the Last Four.
It has been two days of whitewashes and close calls leaving hosts Nairobi City Thunder (NCT) and Burundi's Urunani leading groups A and B respectively after two wins.
City Oilers of Uganda, are second in group B with two wins as well , trailing the Burundians on point difference.
City Oilers v Uranani
And as fate would have it, the last match of Group B pits Andrew Tendo's Oilers, the only team in the East Division with BAL experience, but are yet to reach the playoffs, against Urunani who are on a 6-0 run from the Group Phase.
Their clash, one of the most anticipated, is a repeat of the Elite 16 East Division Semis from two years ago where the Landry Ndikumana-led Urunani fell 71-62 to the Ugandans. As they clash on Sunday, it will be both a revenge mission and a chase for top spot in the group as action heads to the all-important Semis.
The Ugandans opened their campaign with a commanding 77-47 performance against Ajou Deng's Fox basketball team from South Sudan, following it up with a 20-point win (83-73) against Zambia's Matero Magic.
On their part, Urunani showed off with a 87-34 dominance over the Zambians but struggled against a Fox side that displayed a different side to their first game version, to win 70-61.
Under 2023 BAL coach of the year Mamadou Pabi Gueye, Urunani will bank on lethal shooting guard Jean-Jacques Boissy and forward Mohamed Doumbya who have averaged. 24.8 and 20.2 points so far.
Nkosinathi Sandile Sibanyoni who has dominated the boards for the side with a 10.5 average will also be crucial for Urunani against Tendo's men.
On their part, Oilers, chasing a third ticket to BAL have Parrish Petty leading their offense on a 16 scoring average with Israel Otobo leading defensively with a 11.5 rebounds average. His contribution offensively is also crucial as he has averaged 13 points so far. Falando Cortez Jones, averaging 13.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists is also crucial for the Ugandans.
Fox Basketball v Matero Magic
The other Group B match pits winless Fox basketball against Matero Magic who came into this competition on a 5-0 run from the Group Phase but have found the going tough.
Both sides played better in their respective second matches and this sets the stage for an interesting clash despite it being dead rubber.
Group A games
Unlike group B, A remains open with hosts Thunder the only side assured of a place in the Last Four as they lead the group on back-to-back wins.
The Bradley Ibs-coached side is the only side to hit 100+ points, doing it twice with a 102-59 show against South Africa's MBB and 104-71 against Cape Verde's Kriol Star.
Ibs charges play Malawi's Bravehearts who remain winless, heading to the clash as favourites.
It is, however, the match between Road to BAL debutants MBB Blue Soldiers from South Africa against the Islanders that is likely to offer edge-of-the-seat action as both head to Sunday's match on a 1-1 show.
Cyril Shabalala's MBB fell to Thunder but recovered for a 90-61 against the Malawians.
Kriol, meanwhile, had opened their campaign with an 89-58 win over the Malawians for their maiden Road to BAL victory, before falling to the hosts.
Shabalala's men will rely on 29-year-old Dyvonne Pfachi who had a perfect match against Bravehearts on Friday, shooting 100 percent on field goals (10/10 with five trebles) and missing once on the free throw line for 32 points.
Marcus Mokwena and Neo Mothiba's contribution offensively is also expected to push the South Africans with the former being relied more defensively as the side's top rebounder so far, averaging 8.5.
Cape Verde's Kriol Star, meanwhile, have a star-studded squad that has American Patrick McGlynn driving their offense. Rwanda's Dieudonne Ndayisaba Ndizeye and the country's basketball sensation Kenneti Mendes likely to cause MBB all sorts of trouble. The winner of this clash will joing Thunder in the Last Four.
FIBA