The 2024 BAL Kalahari Conference is the inaugural season of the Kalahari Conference, one of the three conferences of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The composition of the conference and the schedule were announced on 15 February 2024.[1] The conference games began on 9 March and will end on 17 March 2024.
 Interior of the SunBet Arena during the games | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | South Africa |
| City | Pretoria |
| Venue(s) | SunBet Arena |
| Dates | 9 – 17 March 2024 |
| Teams | 4 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  FUS Rabat (1st title) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 7 |
| Attendance | 26,214 (3,745 per match) |
| Top scorer | Samkelo Cele, Cape Town Tigers (20.5) |
FUS Rabat were the inaugural Kalahari Conference champions, after finishing ahead of Petro de Luanda and the Cape Town Tigers.[2] Dynamo had withdrawn after the first game day.
Withdrawal of Dynamo BBC
editIn the opening day game between Burundi's Dynamo and South Africa's Cape Town Tigers, the Burundian side taped off the logo of league sponsor Visit Rwanda. Political tensions between the two border nations Burundi and Rwanda had been rising, as Burundi has accused Rwanda of supporting the RED-Tabara rebel militia in the country.[3][4] Dynamo forfeited their second game against FUS Rabat on 10 March, with the BAL citing "refusing to comply with the league’s rules governing jersey and uniform requirements" as the reason why.[5] Following Dynamo's second forfeit on 12 March, the team was automatically withdrawn from the group as per FIBA rules.[6] Dynamo players Bryton Hobbs and Makhtar Gueye stated that the Burundian government had prohibited the team to wear the logo and ordered the club to forfeit its games if necessary.[3][7]
Following the withdrawal of Dynamo, the BAL scheduled three games involving the NBA Academy Africa and local South African teams to fill up the holes in the schedule.[4]
Standings
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | PCT | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FUS Rabat
|
4 | 3 | 1 | 363 | 295 | +68 | .750 | Advance to playoffs |
| 2 |  Petro de Luanda
|
4 | 2 | 2 | 360 | 340 | +20 | .500 | |
| 3 |  Cape Town Tigers (H)
|
4 | 1 | 3 | 305 | 346 | −41 | .250 | |
| 4 |  Dynamo (D)
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | Withdrew |
Games
editAll times are in Central Africa Time.
Gameday 1
edit9 March 2024
12:00 PM (4:00 PM PST) |
| Petro de Luanda |
73–82 | FUS Rabat |
| Scoring by quarter: 17–23, 14–18, 24–25, 18–16 | ||
| Pts: Morais 19 Rebs: Gakou 7 Asts: Dundão 4 |
Pts: Jordan 20 Rebs: Diarra 10 Asts: Four players 3 | |
9 March 2024
3:00 PM (7:00 PM PST) |
| Cape Town Tigers |
73–86 | Dynamo |
| Scoring by quarter: 15–21, 14–23, 24–22, 20–20 | ||
| Pts: Cele 26 Rebs: Sibanyoni, Preston 7 Asts: Sibanyoni 5 |
Pts: Otobo 21 Rebs: Otobo 13 Asts: Hobbs 8 | |
Gameday 2
edit10 March 2024
3:00 PM (7:00 PM PST) |
| Petro de Luanda |
100–88 | Cape Town Tigers |
| Scoring by quarter: 31–14, 16–28, 30–19, 23–27 | ||
| Pts: Buiamba, Morais 17 Rebs: Morais, Moreira 8 Asts: Dundão 5 |
Pts: Manyang 20 Rebs: Sibanyoni 9 Asts: Cele 4 | |
Gameday 3
edit12 March 2024
3:00 PM (7:00 PM PST) |
| Cape Town Tigers |
58–84 | FUS Rabat |
| Scoring by quarter: 18–24, 16–20, 10–27, 14–13 | ||
| Pts: Cele 22 Rebs: Sibanyoni 8 Asts: Diarra 3 |
Pts: Diarra 21 Rebs: Azouga, Najah 7 Asts: Jordan 7 | |
Gameday 4
edit14 March 2024
3:00 PM (7:00 PM PST) |
| FUS Rabat |
86–89 | Petro de Luanda |
| Scoring by quarter: 25–25, 9–21, 23–29, 29–24 | ||
| Pts: Jordan 18 Rebs: Diarra 7 Asts: Three players 4 |
Pts: Dundão 25 Rebs: Gakou 10 Asts: Three players 4 | |
Gameday 5
edit16 March 2024
3:00 PM (7:00 PM PST) |
| Cape Town Tigers |
84–78 | Petro de Luanda |
| Scoring by quarter: 23–21, 24–20, 17–19, 20–18 | ||
| Pts: Preston 20 Rebs: Preston 11 Asts: Diarra 9 |
Pts: Moreira 20 Rebs: Moreira 10 Asts: Morais 7 | |
SunBet Arena, Pretoria
Attendance: 5,734 Referees: Jason Alabanza, Wael Ibrahim Mostafa, Dorothy Okatch |
Gameday 6
editIndividual statistics
edit| Category | Player | Team(s) | Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | Samkelo Cele | Cape Town Tigers | 20.5 |
| Rebounds per game | Aliou Diarra | FUS Rabat | 8.5 |
| Assists per game | John Jordan | 4.5 | |
| Steals per game | Samkelo Cele | Cape Town Tigers | 2.3 |
| Blocks per game | Aliou Diarra | FUS Rabat | 2.3 |
References
edit- ^ "Five New Teams, Three New Countries to Compete in 2024 BAL season Tipping Off on March 9th in South Africa". The BAL. 15 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
- ^ "FUS Rabat are the 2024 Kalahari Conference champions". The BAL. 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Burundi's Dynamo exit Basketball Africa League over jersey row". Reuters. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Burundi's Dynamo BC out of BAL over Visit Rwanda protest". ESPN.com. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ "Dynamo Basketball Club forfeits game against FUS Rabat Basketball". The BAL. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ "Basketball Africa League President Amadou Gallo Fall Statement regarding Dynamo Basketball Club". The BAL. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ Reporter, Times (11 March 2024). "BAL 2024: Gueye slams Burundi's interference amid Dynamo forfeit". The New Times. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ "Statistics". The BAL. Retrieved 18 April 2024.