2022 BAL season

The 2022 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 2, was the second season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL).[1] The season began on 2 March 2022 and ended with the Finals on 28 May 2022.[2][3] The group phase was played in the Dakar Arena in Dakar and the Hassan Moustafa Sports Hall in Cairo. The playoffs and finals were played in the BK Arena[upper-alpha 1] in Kigali for a second year in a row.

2022 BAL season
The BK Arena hosted the playoffs and finals
Season2022
Dates5 March – 28 May 2022
Number of games38
Number of teams12
Regular season
Season MVPMichael Dixon
(US Monsatir)
Finals
ChampionsTunisia US Monastir (1st title)
  Runners-upAngola Petro de Luanda
Third placeEgypt Zamalek
Fourth placeCameroon FAP
Records
Biggest home win39 points
Monastir 106–67 Cape Town
(22 May 2022)
Winning streak6 games
Zamalek
Highest attendance7,576
REG 63–66 FAP
(21 May 2022)

Tunisian club US Monastir won the finals to win its first-ever BAL title, after defeating Angolan club Petro de Luanda in the 2022 BAL Finals.[5] As winners, Monastir qualified for the 2023 FIBA Intercontinental Cup.

Format

On December 9th 2021, the BAL announced a new format for the season, with an expansion of the number of total games to 38. The twelve qualified teams are divided over two conference of six teams, in which all teams play the other teams once. The top eight teams from both conferences advance to the playoffs, which remains a single-elimination tournament.[2]

Team allocation

On 13 October 2021, FIBA announced the 26 teams from 26 countries which participate in the qualification round.[6] Eventually, 8 teams withdrew from the qualifications.

  • 1st, 2nd, etc.: Place in the domestic competition
  • TH: Title holder
  • CW: Cup winner
  • QT: National qualification tournament
Group phase
Egypt ZamalekTH (1st) Tunisia US Monastir (1st) Senegal DUC (1st) Angola Petro de Luanda (1st)
Nigeria Rivers Hoopers (1st)[Note NGR] Rwanda REG (1st)[Note RWA] Morocco AS Salé (1st)[Note MOR]
First qualifying round
Algeria WA Boufarik Mali AS Police (1st) Cape Verde Prédio Uganda City Oilers (1st)
Guinea SLAC (1st) Burkina Faso AOA (1st) Benin ASPAC (1st) Niger Nigelec
Ivory Coast SOA (1st) Democratic Republic of the Congo Espoir Fukash (CW)[Note COD] Cameroon FAP (1st) Equatorial Guinea Malabo Kings (1st)
Central African Republic Tondema (1st) Madagascar ASCUT (1st) South Sudan Cobra Sport Ethiopia Hawassa City
Tanzania Kurasini Heat (1st) Burundi New Star South Africa Cape Town Tigers (1st) Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira (QT)
Mauritius Roche-Bois Warriors Zambia Matero Magic Zimbabwe Mercenaries[Note ZIM] Kenya Ulinzi Warriors (1st)
Malawi Brave Hearts (1st)
Notes
  1. ^
    DR Congo (COD): In FIBA's team list of 13 October, 2020 national champions ASB Mazembe was announced to be the Congolese representative. However, the Fédération de basketball du Congo (FEBACO) eventually decided to enter 2021 champions Espoir Fukash.[7]
  2. ^
    Morocco (MOR): AS Salé was initially drawn into the second qualifying round, which it withdrew from. Later, the team was awarded the void spot left after the exclusion of the Rivers Hoopers of Nigeria.
  3. ^
    Nigeria (NGR): Nigeria's Rivers Hoopers were excluded from the competition as FIBA Africa ruled the championship it won was not valid because it was not hosted by the Nigeria Basketball Federation.[8].
  4. ^
    Rwanda (RWA): The national champions from Rwanda were given direct qualification, as the country will host the semi-finals and finals. Morocco's representative, AS Salé, has been dropped from the six countries which qualified directly and will enter the Elite 16 of the qualifying tournament.[9]
  5. ^
    Zimbabwe (ZIM): The representative team from Zimbabwe, Mercenaries pulled out before its games in Group F started.[10]

Teams

The twelve teams for the inaugural BAL season had to qualify in their domestic competitions to be able to play in the league, similar to other FIBA-organised competitions. Six teams qualify directly as domestic champions; six winners of the qualifying tournaments qualify as well.

Qualified teams

On 22 May 2020, Petro de Luanda was announced as the first qualified team for the 2021 BAL season. The Angolan FAB had abandoned the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and awarded the team the place without naming it as champions.[11] Four teams made their debut in the competition. On January 14, 2022, FIBA Africa decided to exclude the Rivers Hoopers as it stated that the Nigeria Basketball Federation failed to organise a national championship.[12] The BAL chose to give AS Salé direct qualification to replace the Nigerian team. REG qualified directly for the regular season as Rwanda hosted the playoffs and finals.

The twelve teams were confirmed by the BAL on 9 December 2021.[2]

Cape Town Tigers (South Africa), Cobra Sport (South Sudan), SLAC (Guinea) and Espoir Fukash (DR Congo) all were the first teams from their countries to play in the BAL.

Team Home city Qualified as Qualified on Previous BAL seasons Arena Capacity
Angola Petro de Luanda Luanda, Angola Champions of the 2020–21 Angolan Basketball League 22 May 2020[11] 1 (2021) Pavilhão da Cidadela 6,873
Tunisia US Monastir Monastir, Tunisia Champions of the 2020–21 Championnat National A 8 August 2020 1 (2021) Mohamed-Mzali Sports Hall 4,075
Egypt Zamalek Giza, Egypt Champions of the 2020–21 Egyptian Basketball Super League 28 June 2021 1 (2021) Abdulrahman Fawzi Hall 4,000
Senegal DUC Dakar Dakar, Senegal Champions of the 2021 Nationale 1 8 August 2021[13] Debut Marius Ndiaye Stadium 3,000
Rwanda REG Kigali, Rwanda Champions of the 2020–21 NBL Rwanda 30 October 2021[14] Debut Amahoro Indoor Stadium 2,000
Morocco AS Salé Salé, Morocco Champions of the 2020–21 Division Excellence 9 December 2021[2] 1 (2021) Salle El Bouâzzaoui 2,000
South Sudan Cobra Sport Juba, South Sudan Runners-up of East Division 10 December 2021[15] Debut Dr. Biar Sports Complex N/A
Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira Beira, Mozambique Winners of East Division 10 December 2021[15] Debut Estádio do Ferroviário Indoor Hall N/A
Guinea SLAC Conakry, Guinea Runners-up of West Division 15 December 2021[16] Debut Palais des Sports du Stade du 28 Septembre N/A
Cameroon FAP Yaoundé, Cameroon Winners of West Division 15 December 2021[17] 1 (2021) Yaoundé Multipurpose Sports Complex 5,263
Democratic Republic of the Congo Espoir Fukash Kinshasa, DR Congo Third place of West Division 16 December 2021[18] Debut N/A
South Africa Cape Town Tigers Cape Town, South Africa Third place of East Division 11 December 2021[lower-greek 1] Debut N/A
  1. The third place game between Cape Town Tigers and New Star was supposed to be played on 11 December 2021, however, the game was cancelled after six players tested positive on COVID-19 hours before the tip-off.[19] It was a later announced that Cape Town qualified as New Star was forced to forfeit.[20]
Bold: the team won the BAL championship in that year.

Personnel and sponsorship
See also: 2022 BAL season rosters
Team Head coach Team captain
AS Salé Australia Liz Mills[21] Morocco Yassine El Mahsini
Cape Town Tigers South Africa Relton Booysen South Africa Pieter Prinsloo
Cobra Sport South Sudan Manny Berberi[22] United States Jared Harrington
DUC Dakar Senegal Parfait Adjivon Senegal Abel Diop
Espoir Fukash Democratic Republic of the Congo Raven Mwimba Democratic Republic of the Congo Rolly Fula
FAP Cameroon François Enyegue Cameroon Ebaku Akumenzoh
Ferroviário da Beira Spain Luis Lopez Hernandez Mozambique Armando Baptista
Petro de Luanda Brazil José Neto Angola Carlos Morais
REG United States Robert Pack[23] Rwanda Elie Kaje
SLAC Serbia Željko Zečević Guinea Mamadi Keita
US Monastir Serbia Miodrag Perišić Tunisia Radhouane Slimane
Zamalek United States Will Voigt Egypt Mostafa Kejo

Foreign and Elevate players

Each BAL team was allowed to have four foreign players on its roster, including only two non-African players. Players in italics were signed only for the playoffs. If players have multiple nationalities, the nationality of an African nation is shown.

Each team also featured one player from the NBA Academy Africa, under the new BAL Elevate program.[24]

Team African Non-African Elevate player
1 2 3 4
AS Salé Niger Abdoulaye Harouna[25] Guinea Ousmane Drame[26] United States Terrell Stoglin[25] Spain Álvaro Calvo Masa[25] Morocco Nadir Bennis
Cape Town Tigers Democratic Republic of the Congo Myck Kabongo[27] Central African Republic Evans Ganapamo[27] United States Billy Preston[27] United States Cleanthony Early[28]
(replaced United States Jamel Artis[27])		 Senegal Matar Diop
Cobra Sport Kenya Tom Wamukota[29] — United States Jared Harrington[30] United States Leon Hampton[29] South Sudan Khaman Maluach
DUC Ivory Coast Abraham Sie[31] Democratic Republic of the Congo Chadrack Lufile[32] United States Hameed Ali[32] France Jordan Aboudou[32] Senegal Babacar Sané
Espoir Fukash — — Canada Narcisse Ambanza[33] — Nigeria Emmanuel Okorafor
FAP Cape Verde Joel Almeida[34] Senegal Abou Diallo[35] United States Tyjhai Byers[34] United States Deshaun Norman[34] Cameroon Ulrich Chomche
Ferroviário da Beira — — United States Will Perry[36] Canada Jermel Kennedy[36] Nigeria Rueben Chinyelu
Petro de Luanda Cape Verde Anderson Correia[37] — United States E. C. Matthews[38] — Central African Republic Thierry Darlan
REG Democratic Republic of the Congo Pitchou Kambuy Manga[39] Senegal Abdoulaye N'Doye[40] United States Cleveland Thomas[39] United States Anthony Walker[39] Nigeria Joy Ighovodja
SLAC Nigeria Josh Nzeakor[41] Nigeria Chris Obekpa[41] United States Dane Miller Jr.[41] United States Malcolm Griffin
(replaced United States Chris Crawford[41])		 Senegal Serigne Mbaye
US Monastir Ivory Coast Solo Diabate[42] South Sudan Ater Majok[43] Georgia (country) Michael Dixon[44] United States Julius Coles Jr.[45] Cameroon Charles Loic Onana
Zamalek Cameroon D. J. Strawberry[46] Nigeria Ike Diogu[47] Dominican Republic Édgar Sosa[48] United States Mikh McKinney[49] Senegal Khadim Rassoul Mboup


Schedule
A press conference of the BAL in March 2022
Phase Round Draw date Games
Qualifying First round 13 October 2021 21–31 October 2021
Elite 16 20 November 2021 6–16 December 2021
Group phase Dakar – 5–15 March 2022
Cairo 9–19 April 2022
Playoffs Quarter-finals 21–28 May 2022
Semi-finals
Final and third place

Qualifying tournaments
Main article: 2022 BAL qualification

The qualifying tournaments started on 21 October 2021 and ended on 16 December 2021, with 23 teams from 23 countries participating. Six teams qualified for the group phase.

Group phase

The group phase began on 5 March 2022 in the Dakar Arena in Dakar, where 15 games will be played. From 9 April to 19 April 2022, the group phase continued in Hassan Moustafa Sports Hall in Giza. The four best teams of each conference advanced to the playoffs.

Sahara Conference
Main article: 2022 BAL Sahara Conference
Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD PCT Qualification REG USM ASS SLC CFV DUC
1 Rwanda REG 5 4 1 431 423 +8 .800[lower-alpha 1] Advance to playoffs — 77–74 91–87 83–81 — —
2 Tunisia US Monastir 5 4 1 397 355 +42 .800[lower-alpha 1] — — — — 77–71 74–62
3 Morocco AS Salé 5 3 2 454 438 +16 .600 — 90–96 — 91–81 95–84 —
4 Guinea SLAC 5 2 3 392 394 −2 .400 — 55–76 — — 90–74 —
5 Mozambique Ferroviário da Beira 5 1 4 416 448 −32 .200[lower-alpha 2] 89–94 — — — — 98–92
6 Senegal DUC (H) 5 1 4 402 434 −32 .200[lower-alpha 2] 92–86 — 86–91 70–85 — —
Source: BAL, Afrobasket
(H) Hosts
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head: REG 77–74 US Monastir on 14 March 2022.
  2. Head-to-head: Ferroviário da Beira 98–92 DUC on 8 March 2022.

Nile Conference
Main article: 2022 BAL Nile Conference
Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD PCT Qualification ZAM PDL CTT FAP CBS ESF
1 Egypt Zamalek (H) 5 5 0 444 367 +77 1.000 Advance to playoffs — 85–72 — 77–63 80–63 —
2 Angola Petro de Luanda 5 4 1 421 326 +95 .800 — — — 73–60 92–56 94–64
3 South Africa Cape Town Tigers 5 2 3 386 436 −50 .400[lower-alpha 1] 77–101 61–90 — — — —
4 Cameroon FAP 5 2 3 341 347 −6 .400[lower-alpha 1] — — 70–73 — 71–64 77–60
5 South Sudan Cobra Sport 5 1 4 370 408 −38 .200[lower-alpha 2] — — 79–83 — — 108–82
6 Democratic Republic of the Congo Espoir Fukash 5 1 4 394 472 −78 .200[lower-alpha 2] 92–101 — 96–92 — — —
Source: BAL, Afrobasket
(H) Hosts
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head: Cape Town Tigers 73–70 FAP on 13 April 2022.
  2. Head-to-head: Cobra Sport 108–82 Espoir Fukash on 13 April 2022.

Playoffs
Main article: 2022 BAL Playoffs

The playoffs began on 21 May and ended on 28 May with the Finals. All games were played in a single-elimination format, and the entire tournament was played at the Kigali Arena in Kigali.

Bracket
 
QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinals
 
          
 
21 May
 
 
N2
Angola Petro de Luanda		102
 
25 May
 
S3
Morocco AS Salé		89
 
Angola Petro de Luanda88
 
21 May
 
Cameroon FAP74
 
S1
Rwanda REG		63
 
28 May
 
N4
Cameroon FAP		66
 
Angola Petro de Luanda72
 
22 May
 
Tunisia US Monastir83
 
N1
Egypt Zamalek		66
 
25 May
 
S4
Guinea SLAC		49
 
Egypt Zamalek81
 
22 May
 
Tunisia US Monastir88 Third place game
 
S2
Tunisia US Monastir		106
 
27 May
 
N3
South Africa Cape Town Tigers		67
 
Cameroon FAP74
 
 
Egypt Zamalek97
 

Awards

This season, the Coach of the Year award and All-Defensive First Team were introduced and announced on 27 May.[50][51] The MVP and Defensive Player of the Year were announced on 28 May 2022.[5] The BAL Ubuntu Award, for the player that made the greatest contribution to his community, was awarded on 16 March 2023 after a fan vote.[52]

Statistics

The following were the statistical leaders in 2022 BAL season, including all playoff games.[53]

Team statistic leaders
CategoryTeamStatistic
Points per gameAS Salé90.5
Rebounds per gameEspoir Fukash47.8
Assists per gamePetro de Luanda21.5
Steals per game10.6
Blocks per gameSLAC4.8
Turnovers per gameEspoir Fukash20.6
Fouls per gameREG22.3
FG%US Monastir48.1%
FT%75.3%
3FG%AS Salé38.9%

Notes
  1. The BK Arena was named the Kigali Arena as the name was changed during the season. On May 24, 2022, the arena's name was changed to the BK Arena after a six-year sponsorship deal worth 7 billion RF with the Bank of Kigali.[4]

References
  1. "NBA, FIBA launching 12-team league in Africa; Barack Obama to have hands-on role". USA TODAY.
  2. BAL, NBA-. "BASKETBALL AFRICA LEAGUE TO TIP OFF EXPANDED SECOND SEASON MARCH 5". NBA - BAL. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  3. "What next for the Basketball Africa League?". The New Times | Rwanda. 6 June 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  4. "Kigali Arena rebrands to BK Arena". The New Times | Rwanda. 24 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  5. "US Monastir are the 2022 Basketball Africa League Champions". The BAL. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  6. "Draw results for second edition of Basketball Africa League Qualifiers confirmed". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  7. Ndour, Papa Lamine. "BAL : BC Espoir Fukash remplace BC Mazembe pour la RD Congo". Sport News Africa (in French). Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  8. "FIBA Africa stops Rivers Hoopers from BAL". The Nation Newspaper. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  9. "Rwandan champions to get automatic ticket to BAL 2022". The New Times Rwanda. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  10. "24 teams set to battle for six remaining tickets for second edition of Basketball Africa League". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  11. "Petro de Luanda earn right to represent Angola at Basketball Africa League 2020-21". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  12. "BREAKING: FIBA throws out Nigeria from BAL Final Round". The Sun Nigeria. 17 January 2022. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
  13. "APS - Le DUC gagne le titre chez les messieurs". aps.sn. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  14. "Basketball: REG crowned national league champions". The New Times | Rwanda. 31 October 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  15. "Ferroviario da Beira and Cobra Sport make history by booking tickets to Basketball Africa League 2022". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  16. "Guinea's SLAC stun AS Police in OT, qualify to Basketball Africa League". FIBA.basketball. 15 December 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  17. "After F.A.P and SLAC which team will secure the last ticket to the BAL?". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  18. "Espoir Fukash beat AS Police in overtime, qualify to BAL 2022". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  19. "Beira finish the Elite 16 Division East competition on a high note". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  20. "Cape Town Tigers qualify for BAL after New Star forfeit". ESPN.com. 27 January 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  21. "COACH MILLS ARE READY FOR THE SHOW ❤️🏆". AS Salé Basketball. 12 February 2022. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
  22. "Cobra Sport reinforce roster with Wek, Wang". The BAL Report. 2 March 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  23. Sikubwabo, Damas (18 February 2022). "Rwanda: Basketball - REG Sign American Coach Ahead of Basketball Africa League". allAfrica.com. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  24. "BAL teams to field one NBA Academy player each in 2022". ESPN.com. 2 March 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  25. "Association Sportive de Salé (MOROCCO)". The BAL. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  26. "AS Salé (3) vs Petro de Luanda (2): A battle of titans to open the 2022 BAL playoffs". The BAL. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  27. "Cape Town Tigers (SOUTH AFRICA)". The BAL.
  28. @CapeTownTigers (4 May 2022). "Welcome to the family @CleanthonyE" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. "Cobra Sports (SOUTH SUDAN)". The BAL. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  30. "USA's Harrington exits Tigers for Cobra Sport ahead of BAL". ESPN.com. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  31. "Basketball Africa League: DUC strengthens with an Ivorian leader". Archysport. 23 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  32. "BAL – Team du Dakar Université Club (Duc) : Américain, Français, Ivoirien et Congolais en renfort". Le Quotidien. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  33. "BC Espoir Fukash (CONGO)". The BAL. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  34. "F.A.P. (CAMEROON)". The BAL. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  35. Demba, Varore (16 May 2022). "BAL 2022-palyoffs : Abou Diallo débarque aux FAP". Sport News Africa (in French). Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  36. "CFV Beira (MOZAMBIQUE)". The BAL.
  37. "YANICK MOREIRA E ANDERSON CORREIA APRESENTADOS". Petro de Luanda (in European Portuguese). 14 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  38. "NOVO JOGADOR PARA A BAL". Petro de Luanda (in European Portuguese). 8 May 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  39. "Rwanda Energy Group BBC (RWANDA)". The BAL. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
  40. "Kenny Gasana, Abdoulaye Ndoye added to REG's squad for BAL playoffs". The New Times Rwanda. 14 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  41. "Nous souhaitons la bienvenue à nos nouveaux guerriers". Instagram.com. SLAC Basketball. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  42. "🏀 سليمان ديباتي نجم المنتخب الإيفواري لكرةالسلة إتحادي 👏". Instagram.com. Union Sportive Monastirienne. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  43. Boubaker, Saber Ben (2 March 2022). "Ligue d'Afrique de Basketball : Liste finale de l'US Monastir". Sport By TN (in French). Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  44. "مايكل ديكسون نجم المنتخب الجورجي لكرة السلة اتحادي 👏". Instagram.com. Union Sportive Monastirienne. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  45. @@USMonastirBB (11 May 2022). "Welcome to the City of Champions Julius 💎" (Tweet). Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via Twitter.
  46. "Zamalek SC signs DJ Strawberry". Sportando. 30 January 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  47. "Al Zamalek inks Ikechukwu Diogu". afrobasket.com. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  48. "Al Zamalek signs Edgar Sosa". Latinbasket. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  49. Lima, Enéas (8 February 2022). "Copa Intercontinental 2022 – Zamalek". Garrafão Rubro-negro (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  50. "José Neto voted 2022 BAL Coach of the Year". The BAL. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  51. "Zamalek bounce back after disappointing semifinal to finish third". The BAL. Retrieved 28 May 2022. The 2022 All-Defensive Team included Childe Dundão and Abou Gakou (Petro de Luanda), Wilson Jean Jacques (REG), Brice Bidias (FAP) and Ater Majok (US Monastir). Petro de Luanda's José Neto received the 2022 Coach of the Year award while Zamalek's Anas Mahmoud received the annual Sportsmanship award.
  52. Sikubwabo, Damas (16 March 2023). "Nshobozwa awarded BAL's Ubuntu community support award". The New Times. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  53. "Statistics". The BAL. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
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