Sibanyoni added 16 points and four assists, while Cartier Diarra got 13 points and eight assists, and Dhieu Deng finished with 12 points before leaving the game in the second half with an injury.
Aliou Diarra led Rabat with 18 points and 16 rebounds, with a big night from NBA Academy Africa’s Mohamed Sylla, who finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.
The game was tight throughout, with 17 lead changes and 14 ties, but the Tigers found themselves with a 10-point lead late in the fourth quarter, almost throwing it away with less than two minutes left on the clock before Cele delivered when it counted most.
Earlier in the afternoon, Libya’s Al Ahly Ly SC beat the defending champions, Egypt’s Al Ahly, 86-77.
Al Ahly Ly will take on the winner of the quarterfinal between Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers and Tunisia’s Monastir in Wednesday's semifinals.
The 2024 BAL season is reaching fans in 214 countries and territories in 17 languages through free-to-air and paid TV broadcast partnerships with companies including African Union of Broadcasting, American Forces Network (AFN), Canal+, NBA TV, SuperSport, Tencent Video, TSN, TV5 Monde and the BAL’s YouTube channel.
Basketball Africa League
Cape Town Tigers make history after reaching Basketball Africa semis
Image: BAL via Getty Images
It was an occasion to remember for South Africa’s Cape Town Tigers as they scrambled to a dramatic 91-88 win over Morocco’s FUS Rabat in their 2024 Basketball Africa League (BAL) playoffs’ quarterfinal at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda on Sunday night.
Samkelo Cele’s three-pointer took the game to overtime, giving the Tigers time to regain their composure and make history by becoming the first South African team to advance to the semifinals.
The result is being hailed as one of the major upsets in BAL history.
Cele led the team with a game-high 30 points, also grabbing nine rebounds. Nkosinathi Sibanyoni also made BAL history, grabbing an all-time high 25 rebounds, almost half the team’s 53, including 14 on the offensive board.
“Today we had to go all out because it’s win or go home, so I’m glad we made it. I am happy for us, I am happy for Cape Town Tigers. This is for South Africa,” Sibanyoni said.
Sibanyoni added 16 points and four assists, while Cartier Diarra got 13 points and eight assists, and Dhieu Deng finished with 12 points before leaving the game in the second half with an injury.
Aliou Diarra led Rabat with 18 points and 16 rebounds, with a big night from NBA Academy Africa’s Mohamed Sylla, who finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.
The game was tight throughout, with 17 lead changes and 14 ties, but the Tigers found themselves with a 10-point lead late in the fourth quarter, almost throwing it away with less than two minutes left on the clock before Cele delivered when it counted most.
Earlier in the afternoon, Libya’s Al Ahly Ly SC beat the defending champions, Egypt’s Al Ahly, 86-77.
Al Ahly Ly will take on the winner of the quarterfinal between Nigeria’s Rivers Hoopers and Tunisia’s Monastir in Wednesday's semifinals.
The 2024 BAL season is reaching fans in 214 countries and territories in 17 languages through free-to-air and paid TV broadcast partnerships with companies including African Union of Broadcasting, American Forces Network (AFN), Canal+, NBA TV, SuperSport, Tencent Video, TSN, TV5 Monde and the BAL’s YouTube channel.
Basketball Africa League
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