Sunday, April 13 Rivers Hoopers 79-59 Stade Malien Al Ittihad 98-74 FUS Rabat Egyptian champions Al Ittihad and Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers have booked their tickets to the Basketball Africa League (BAL) 2025 playoffs and finals which will take place at SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa from June 6-14. Rivers Hoopers defeated Mali’s Stade Malien 79-59 and Al Ittihad beat Morocco’s FUS Rabat 98-74 as the Kalahari Conference concluded in Rabat, Morocco on Sunday night, to secure the playoffs slots with 4-2 and 6-0 records respectively. Raphiael Putney led the Kingsmen with 15 points, with Madut Akec adding 14 points and eight rebounds and Micheal Afuwape recording 13 points and five steals. The Hoopers are ending the Kalahari Conference with four wins and two losses, behind only the conference leaders Al Ittihad (6-0) who finished the campaign unbeaten. ALSO READ: BAL 2025: Morocco, Rwanda to host conference games as playoffs head to South Africa Meanwhile, five Ittihad players scored in double digits, led by Abdelhady Metwaly with 19 points. Anas Mahmoud recorded 10 points and seven rebounds, and Ittihad remain undefeated in the BAL this season. Nisre Zouzoa got hot out of the gate for Rabat, finishing with 22 points, but it was not enough for the Moroccan team to bounce back down the stretch. With two wins and four losses, FUS Rabat finished third in the Kalahari Conference and will be looking closely at what happens in Cairo and Kigali when the conference play continues. The 2025 BAL conference group phase will continue in Dakar, Senegal (April 26-May 4) and Kigali, Rwanda (May 17-25) next, before the top eight teams travel to Pretoria, South Africa to compete for the 2025 BAL championship.
