Africa-Press – Angola. The team of Petro de Luanda, current national champions, ended, in an undefeated way, the dispute of the first round of the 44th edition of the National Senior Men’s Basketball Championship, adding 24 points as a result of 12 triumphs in an equal number of matches.
The oil workers who have their eyes on the second edition of the BAL (Basketeball African League), after winning third place in the first edition, surpassed, with some normality, the 12 teams that compete in the competition.
With a squad full of great individual values, Carlos Morais, Olímpio Cipriano, Leonel Paulo, Gerson “Lukeny” Gonçalves, Gerson Domingos, Jone Lopes Pedro, Pedro Bastos, Childe Dundão, Valdelício Joaquim, Aboubakar Gakou, all Angolan internationals, tricolor team, commanded by the Brazilian coach José Neto, showed in the first round to be a serious candidate to conquer the domestic ring.
In fact, the 12 victories achieved by the Eixo Viário team in this first round of the competition, attest to the superiority of the national champions, who for 75 days were deprived of the extreme pole, Leonel Paulo, recovered from surgery on his left knee.
Although at the beginning they did not count on Carlos Morais, as he was assigned to the Medical Department, even so, the tricolors always maintained their balance and their exhibitional quality was always above average. With Morais and Leonel available, the oil team gained more consistency.
With confidence indices on the rise, José Neto gave game minutes to all athletes. The winger and triple player José António, “disappeared” for a long time, was one of those who knew how to take advantage of the few minutes provided. However, of the 12 victories achieved in this first round, nine were for one hundred ticket. Only three teams avoided the hundred plate against the tricolors, namely 1 ⁰ de Agosto, Vila Clotilde and Interclube.
best attack
With one thousand four hundred and twenty-two (1422) points scored, in twelve matches, Petro de Luanda has the best attack in the first phase of the competition. The oil players have an average of 118.5 points for each challenge, numbers that illustrate the attacking power of the champions from the ball to the basket.
In the defensive chapter, the team suffered seven hundred and seventy-seven (777) points, which represents an average of 64.7 points suffered in each match.
Two matches close first round
Two matches mark today, the end of the first round of the National Championship, with Interclube hosting, at 4:00 pm, at the 28 de Fevereiro Pavilion, the Clube Amigo de Basquetebol de Benguela.
At the same time, the 1 ⁰ of August B will face, in the Victorino Cunha Pavilion, the Casa do Pessoas do Porto do Lobito.
Raúl Duarte’s pupils, who are focused on winning the title, will take advantage of this afternoon’s challenge to add two more points, against a team that has not yet managed to achieve any triumph.
Despite facing a “fragile” group, the police commander intends that his pupils enter determined so as not to be surprised in their own precinct.
For their part, the Benguelans from CAB will try to counteract the favoritism of Grupo Desportivo Interclube as much as possible, in an almost impossible mission.
In the Victorino Cunha Pavilion, the Casa do Pessoas do Porto do Lobito will try to break the B team of the 1 ⁰ of August.
Lobito’s rail and port team has carried out a sensational campaign, despite being a rookie. .
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