Nigeria’s sole representatives in the fifth season of the Basketball Africa League, Rivers Hoopers, have unveiled their roster for the finals currently ongoing at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The KingsMen, making their third appearance in the annual basketball event, sealed their spot for the BAL finals by finishing second in the Kalahari Conference qualifiers in Rabat, Morocco, in April.
The Port Harcourt-based franchise, the only representative from West Africa, is one of eight teams battling it out to become continental champions.
In a bid to go one better than the third-placed podium finish the team had in the 2024 edition in Kigali Rwanda, head coach Ogah Odaudu has officially named 13 players on his roster who will fly Nigeria’s flag at the competition.
Filling out the guard positions is 33-year-old Nigerian Canadian star Kelvin Amayo, who averaged 6.6 assists per game during the Kalahari Conference qualifiers, Congo DR national team captain Maxi Shamba, who joined the squad in March, D’Tigers star Michael Okiki as well as fellow Nigerian Abel Offia and Ahmed Doumbia of Guinea are included.
In the centre positions, Peter Olisemeka, who was the rebounds leader during the qualifiers when he averaged a total of 11.0 per game, leads the pack ahead of Samuel Sani, David Ike and Chingka Garba, who was poached from Rwandan side Orion Basketball Club.
Leading the forwards is South Sudan superstar Madut Akec, who finished as the scoring leader during the qualifiers by averaging a total of 17.8 points per game, there are spots for Ifeanyi Koko Jr, Buchi Nwaiwu and 35-year-old American Raphiael Putney.
The Hoopers have been ranked as the fourth-best team amongst the eight franchises in South Africa, behind Libyan side Al Ahli SC, Al Ittihad of Egypt and U.S. Monastir of Tunisia.
The reigning national champions have a date with US Monastir in a seeding fixture later this evening and will be looking to Madut Akec and Kelvin Amayo to deliver the goods against the Tunisian outfit, who are seeking to earn a second championship title in three years.
US Monastir and reigning holders Petro de Luanda of Angola are the only two teams to have featured in all five seasons of the Basketball Africa League.
Both the Hoopers and Monastir finished with identical records during their respective qualifying series. Hoopers finished the Kalahari Conference with a record of four wins and two defeats to place second, while Monastir topped their Sahara Conference qualifiers with a record of four wins and two losses.
This will be the fifth meeting between the Hoopers and Monastir in BAL history, with both teams registering two wins apiece. Most recently, the KingsMen knocked out the nine-time Tunisian champions in an electrifying quarter-final showdown during the fourth BAL season last year, which ended 92-88 in favour of the Hoopers.
The seeding games at BAL 2025 will be played to determine the playoff bracket match-ups and seeding for the single-elimination playoffs. The outcome of these matches will determine the final seeding for the quarterfinals.
The placement fixtures will see Libyan side Al Ahli Tripoli lock horns against Al Ittihad Alexandria of Egypt, Angola’s Petro de Luanda will play APR of Rwanda, while Kriol Star of Cape Verde will battle FUS Rabat.
The Hoopers, will be looking to reach the final in South Africa, in what would be their best-ever outing since the formation of the Basketball Africa League. The BAL playoffs will run from June 6 to 14.
