FUS Rabat hand Tigers proper BAL schooling

It was proper domination and nothing short of a basketball exhibition as FUS Rabat handed Cape Town Tigers the schooling of the season by beating them 84-58 in the Basketball Africa League (BAL) at Sunbet Arena in Pretoria on Tuesday. 

Aliou Diarra was the chief destroyer for the Moroccans with 21 points and six rebounds. 

The Tigers registered the first bucket of the night via their talisman Samkelo Cele from the tip off.

This was something they had failed to do in their weekend games against Petro de Luanda and Dynamo.

Urged by “defence” shouts from assistant Vincent Ntunja and claps from the bench, the re-energised Tigers fought for every loose ball and pounced on every opportunity to attack the rim.

Despite that the men from Morocco had an answer for every punch thrown. There was nothing to separate the sides as they went back and forth on the board in the first five minutes.

It was like watching two heavyweight boxers go toe-to-toe, but seven points from Ayoub Nouh for FUS Rabat saw them win the battle 24-18 in the first quarter.

If someone had entered the arena in the middle of the second quarter, the first voices they heard were of Ntunja and head coach “Flosh” Ngwenya as they continued being vocal and dishing instructions from the bench.

It was a contrast in the Rabat dugout. They were cool, calm and collected. That was also reflected on the court as they continued where they left off in the first 10 minutes.

Their US import Johnathan Jordan, Ayoub Nouhi, Mohamed Sylla and captain Abdelhakim Zouita were the masters in offensive and defence as FUS Rabat finished 44-34 and took a 10-point lead to halftime. 

FUS Rabat were unstoppable in the third quarter and added 27 points before heading into the final stanza.

They produced arguably the best performance of the tournament with their razzle-dazzle, behind-the-ball passes, dunks and long threes.

It was like watching the Boston Celtics in the 1960s with Bill Russell, the LA Lakers in the 1980s with Magic Johnson or the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s with Michael Jordan.

It was also a Jordan on Tuesday night, but this time it was John at the forefront demolishing the Tigers.

He channelled his inner Michael. Only 178cm in height and the smallest man on the court, he proved dynamite does come in small packages.

He dished out three assists, and made one steal in the quarter as none of the Tigers players other than Cele had an answer. The writing was on the wall for the home side in the middle period of the fourth quarter.

You could hear a pin drop in the arena as Rabat silenced the crowd. Cele finished with 22 points and other than Cartier Diarra, none of the Tigers' players passed double figures.

The game scheduled for an earlier tip between Petro de Luanda and Dynamo did not happen. 

Burundi's Dynamo forfeited participation in the BAL after again refusing to comply with BAL’s rules and requirements governing jerseys and uniforms. 

Dynamo missed their second game against FUS Rabat on Sunday for the same reason. 

“Under FIBA rules, two forfeitures in the same tournament trigger the club’s automatic withdrawal,” said BAL president Amadou Gallo Fall.