Zenith

  • Latest News

    Sunday, May 28, 2023

    Egypt’s Al Ahly Crowned 2023 Basketball Africa League Champions

    Al Ahly Forward Anunwa “Nuni” Omot Named 2023 BAL Most Valuable Player, Receives Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy.


    Egypt’s Al Ahly defeated Senegal’s AS Douanes 80-65 to win the 2023 Basketball Africa League (BAL) Finals, which took place at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda and reached fans in 214 countries and territories in 17 languages.

    Following the game, BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall and FIBA Africa President Anibal Manave presented Al Ahly with the BAL Championship Trophy and Al Ahly forward Anunwa “Nuni” Omot with The Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy for winning the 2023 BAL Most Valuable Player Award.  Omot recorded per game averages of 18.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists during the season.

    Al Ahly went 7-1 during the Nile Conference group phase and Playoffs, defeating Rwanda Energy Group and Mali’s Stade Malien in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, to advance to the Finals.  Stade Malien defeated Angola’s Club Atlético Petróleos de Luanda (Petro de Luanda) 73-65 in the third-place game yesterday.

    Notable attendees throughout the 2023 BAL Playoffs and Finals included NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum; FIBA President Hamane Niang; FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis; NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams; Fall; Manave; FIBA Africa Executive Director Alphonse Bilé; Toronto Raptors Vice-Chairman and Team President Masai Ujiri; Academy Award-winning actor, social activist and NBA Africa investor Forest Whitaker; BAL Ambassadors and NBA Africa investors Luol Deng (South Sudan), Joakim Noah (grandfather from Cameroon) and Ian Mahinmi (France; ties to Benin); and New York Knicks President of G League Operations Pops Mensah-Bonsu (Ghana).

    The league has also announced several end-of-season awards, some of which honor pioneering African NBA legends:

    2023 BAL Coach of the Year

    AS Douanes head coach Mamadou Gueye led his team to a 3-2 record in the Sahara Conference group phase before defeating Mozambique’s Clube Ferroviário da Beira (CFV-Beira) and Petro de Luanda to advance to the Finals.  Gueye becomes the first African-born coach to win the award.

    2023 BAL Defensive Player of the Year

    Stade Malien center Aliou Diarra received The Dikembe Mutombo Trophy after helping his team to a 5-3 record and recording per game averages of 18.3 points, 12.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.

    2023 BAL Sportsmanship Award

    CFV-Beira guard Will Perry received The Manute Bol Trophy for exemplifying the ideals of sportsmanship and camaraderie.

    2023 All-BAL First Team
     

    Position
     

    Player
     

    Team
     

    Guard
     
    Jean Jacques Boissy
     
    AS Douanes
     
    Guard
     
    Chris Crawford
     
    AS Douanes
     
    Guard
     
    Dane Miller Jr.
     
    S.L.A.C
     
    Forward
     
    Anunwa Omot
     
    Al Ahly
     
    Forward
     
    Aliou Diarra
     
    Stade Malien
     
     

    2023 All-BAL Defensive Team
     

    Position
     

    Player
     

    Team
     

    Guard
     
    Childe Dundao
     
    Petro de Luanda
     
    Guard
     
    Jean Jacques Boissy
     
    AS Douanes
     
    Guard
     
    Samkelo Cele
     
    Cape Town Tigers
     
    Forward
     
    Aliou Diarra
     
    Stade Malien
     
    Center
     
    Ater Majok
     
    Petro de Luanda

    The voting panels were comprised of coaches, team captains, media and broadcasters in attendance and varied for each award.  The 2023 BAL Ubuntu Award, which is awarded to an individual or organization that has made an impact on the local community during the BAL season, will be announced at a later date.

    The 2023 BAL season once again featured the top 12 club teams from 12 African countries playing a total of 38 games in Dakar, Senegal; Cairo, Egypt; and Kigali, Rwanda over three months.  Champions from the national leagues in Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia earned their participation in the 2023 BAL season by winning their respective national leagues.  The remaining six teams, which came from Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Mozambique, South Africa and Uganda, secured their participation through the Road to the BAL qualifying tournaments conducted by FIBA Africa across the continent from October to November 2022.

    • Blogger Comments
    • Facebook Comments

    0 comments:

    Item Reviewed: Egypt’s Al Ahly Crowned 2023 Basketball Africa League Champions Rating: 5 Reviewed By: BrandIconImage
    Scroll to Top