APR handed Petro de Luanda a heavy defeat in the Basketball Africa League (BAL), beating the Angolan giants by 18 points in a commanding 75-57 victory on Saturday. This was only the second time Petro de Luanda has lost by such a wide margin in BAL history, the first being an 89-71 semifinal loss to Zamalek during the league’s debut season in 2021. APR outclassed the Angolan giants in almost every aspect of the game. By the end of the second quarter, Petro de Luanda had already had 12 turnovers compared to APR's six at that stage of the game. Yanick Moreira and Cleusio Castro both tried to play physically, but by the end of the third quarter, either player had achieved three fouls. To make matters worse for Petro de Luanda, head coach Sergio Moreno was ejected after receiving a second technical foul in the third quarter when his team trailed 50-39. A four-point lead at halftime was all that APR needed, and they increased their lead in the third quarter to as many as 25 points. Aliou Diarra was unstoppable causing all sorts of troubles to Petro de Luanda’s defence. The Malian international finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds, marking his fourth double-double of the season. Nuni Omot, the only other APR player to score in the double digits, added 15 points. Petro de Luanda's substitutes, Patrick Gardner and Samkelo Cele, led the team in scoring with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
