Africa-Press – Rwanda. Nile Conference
Saturday, May 17
APR 92–63 NCT
MBB 77-87 Al Ahli Tripoli
Malian forward Aliou Diarra delivered a stellar performance with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 6 blocks as APR got off to a strong start to the Nile Conference of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) 2025 with a convincing 92-63 win over Kenya’s Nairobi City Thunder (NCT) before their home crowd at BK Arena on Saturday, May 17.
Diarra nearly tied the BAL single-game block record, which stands at 7 and is held by Khaman Maluach.
The late tip-off, which was attended by thousands including president Paul Kagame, began with both teams showing intensity. After a tightly contested opening, the Kenyan side edged ahead, leading 23–22 at the end of the first quarter.
President Paul Kagame was among thousands of basketball supporters who watched APR beat Nairobi City Thunder 92-63 in their first match of the Nile Conference at BK Arena on Saturday
Miss Rwanda 2020 Naomi Nishimwe and her husband Michael Tesfay followed APR playing Nairobi City Thunder in their first match of the Nile Conference
The second quarter saw the momentum shift repeatedly before APR began to pull away.
While NCT’s Tylor Ongwae was the only player to reach double figures in first-half scoring, APR led 39–31 at the break, buoyed by a more balanced offensive effort.
The early stages of the third quarter were one-way traffic as APR star player, Diarra, hit top gear along with Youssoupha Ndoye and Chasson Randle.
Point guard Adonis Filer was watching courtside with his fiancée Kathia Kamali after he was dropped from APR final roster for BAL 2025
NCT fought back towards the end of the quarter, but APR held a 59-51 lead, heading into the last.
The floodgates opened in the fourth quarter as NCT ran out of steam. Ndoye, Diarra, Dane Miller and Chasson Randle all had standout moments in a 33-12 run as APR gave the home fans plenty of value for money in an almost packed stadium.
APR are now top of the conference, ahead of BAL 2024 runners-up Al Ahli who, inspired by Jean Jacques Boisy, beat South African debutants Made By Basketball (MBB) 87-77 in the game that opened the Nile Conference.
Action resumes on Sunday where NCT will take on Al Ahli SC at 2:30pm while MBB will be looking to bag their first win in the conference when they go head to head with APR at 5:30pm.
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