The win ensured the Cameroonian champions a place in the
playoffs next month in Kigali.
Deshaun Morman ignited FAP’s offense with a team-high 16
points.
But it was in the defensive end where unsung hero Ulrich
Chomche took a leading role.
Chomche had extra motivation coming from the courtside and
it worked to perfection.
Sitting courtside, NBA Academy Africa Technical Director
Roland Houston cheered and instructed the Cameroonian youngster each time he
got involved in the game.
Four major blocks, one dunk, two steals, three rebounds and
six points in 13:02 minutes off the bench was the 6-foot-9’s contribution.
Chomche sparked his team defensively and owned the second
quarter, a crucial for moment for FAP, who headed to locker room leading 46-23.
“Ulrich did what he was supposed to do, in what he is
capable of doing, which is defend the rim, defend the basket. He did a good job
of that and we are extremely proud of him,” Houston said in the aftermath of
the game.
Houston continued: “He knows what we do as the NBA Academy;
he knows our expectations. I was happy for him, he did what he was supposed to
do, which is to play hard.”
Despite the 23-point deficit at the break, Cobra Sport
performed an incredible come back, and almost denied FAP.
What Cobra Sport failed to do in the first half they did in
the third quarter.
Manyang Berberi’s team used a 12-2 run to cut the gap
(48-35) with 4:26 left in the third quarter to be back in the game.
With the resurgence, Cobra Sports fans inside the arena, who
looked relatively quiet in the first half, suddenly gained hope, chanting and
clapping for every point made and rebound grabbed by their heroes.
Cobra Sports limited FAP to just two points in the first
seven minutes of the third, before FAP’s Tyjhai Byers hit one of his two
free-throw.
By outscoring FAP 18-7 in the third quarter, the South Sudan
entered the final quarter trailing 53-41.
With 2:44 left, Cobra Sport trailed 66-57, and Padiet Wang
sank a 3pt with 29 seconds left that cut the gap to 68-64, but foul trouble
hindered their chances to comeback in the game.
FAP scored their last three points of the game from the
charity stripe.
Mayan Kiir had another big performance, finishing with 22
points and eight rebounds, Wang had 20 points and David contributed 10 points
for Cobra Sport.
“They were more aggressive than us in the first half. Now we
have to live with the results,” said Deng.
Wang insisted they fought hard, but “that first half really
beat us. If we played in the first half the way we played in the second half,
we would have been in a better position to win the game.”
FAP shooting guard Joel Almeida said that they relaxed in the
third quarter. “We didn’t execute and that took us out of momentum, and they
started making shots and they started building their confidence.”
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