Saturday Stade Malien Vs Cape Town Tigers 4pm REG Vs Al Ahly 7:30pm As the curtain rises on the playoffs of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) on Saturday, May 20, fans will be eagerly waiting for the clash between home team Rwanda Energy Group (REG) and Egyptian giants Al Ahly. The contest that will take place at 7:30pm at the BK Arena will be the second game of the day, since the tournament’s opener will be played at 4pm between Mali’s Stade Malien and South Africa’s Cape Town Tigers. By Friday evening, all the tickets to the REG vs Al Ahly match had sold out, a sign of how the tournament has gained alot of popularity in Kigali. ALSO READ: BAL Playoffs: Tickets for REG vs Al Ahly sold-out ahead of Saturday clash As the battle gets underway, here are a few things that you may need to know about the duel: How the two teams qualified to this stage REG’s display at the Sahara Conference in Dakar, Senegal earlier this year was one that can be described as mixed. The team finished with a 3-2 record and advanced to the playoffs in third position. Eight teams from the two conferences – Nile and Sahara, will be competing on a knock-out basis to see who takes this year’s trophy. As for Al Ahly, they finished in second place in the Nile Conference, having lost only one game, and that to the winners of the conference - Petro de Luanda. ALSO READ:BAL 2023: REG to face Al Ahly in playoffs What the players say ahead of the game “I feel motivated,” Adonis Filer, REG’s point guard, told Times Sport in an interview. “We know that the fans are going to come out and are going to pack the house, so we just really want to put on a big show for all Rwandan fans coming to the game and show us support. We want to get that win for the country,” he added. Cleveland Thomas, REG’s shooting guard, said their team’s chemistry is good going into the competition. “I believe our team’s chemistry is getting better too. So I feel like we are prepared and we're going to keep preparing until Saturday,” he noted. Head coach Dean Murray regards Ahly as a top team but insisted that REG will go into the game wanting nothing but winning. Obviously we're going to the game to win it. I mean, you know, we're confident in that regard, he said. We know it's going to be a tough game. Al Ahly is a good team. I think they have been actually playing the domestic league finals right now in Egypt. So they're coming fresh from a good challenge, he added. ALSO READ: Why REG could be the team to beat at BAL playoffs Is the home advantage something to rely on? REG will be playing hard but also home court advantage may be a factor to push them on to victory. There are several pieces that make court advantage so useful in basketball. ALSO READ: BAL playoffs: Murray rallies home supporters ahead of Al Ahly test One advantage to playing on home court means you are in front of your own fans, cheering you on. This adds to the confidence you have. Dean Murray said he expects lots of fans at the arena as action gets underway.
