MyZA
News, Directory, Events and Other Stuff
DHL Western Province won big to maintain their lead at the top of the standings while the Bulls Daisies and Border Ladies claimed bonus-point victories in the fourth round of the Women’s Premier Division staged over the weekend. Despite the absence of their national players – who are on duty with the Springbok Women at …
At 0256 UTC (0456 local), 11th Hour Racing Team crossed the finish line of Leg 5 of The Ocean Race 2022-23 in Aarhus, Denmark, closing out the critically important double-pointer leg in first place, bagging the full ten points. After sailing for 7 days 8 hours 41 minutes, and 49 seconds and with back-to-back leg …
Springbok Women interim head coach Louis Koen congratulated his squad on their effort in Madagascar during the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup, where they won all three their games and lifted the trophy at Stade Maki in Antananarivo on Sunday. The win also secured qualification to the new WXV 2 tournament, which will be played in …
Egypt's Al Ahly defeated Senegal's AS Douanes 80-65 to win the 2023 Basketball Africa League (BAL) (http://www.NBA.com/theBAL) Finals, which took place at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda and reached fans in 214 countries and territories in 17 languages.
Following the game, BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall and FIBA Africa President Anibal Manave presented Al Ahly with the BAL Championship Trophy and Al Ahly forward Anunwa “Nuni” Omot with The Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy for winning the 2023 BAL Most Valuable Player Award. Omot recorded per game averages of 18.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists during the season.
Al Ahly went 7-1 during the Nile Conference group phase and Playoffs, defeating Rwanda Energy Group and Mali's Stade Malien in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, to advance to the Finals. Stade Malien defeated Angola's Club Atlético Petróleos de Luanda (Petro de Luanda) 73-65 in the third-place game yesterday.
Notable attendees throughout the 2023 BAL Playoffs and Finals included NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum; FIBA President Hamane Niang; FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis; NBA Africa CEO Victor Williams; Fall; Manave; FIBA Africa Executive Director Alphonse Bilé; Toronto Raptors Vice-Chairman and Team President Masai Ujiri; Academy Award-winning actor, social activist and NBA Africa investor Forest Whitaker; BAL Ambassadors and NBA Africa investors Luol Deng (South Sudan), Joakim Noah (grandfather from Cameroon) and Ian Mahinmi (France; ties to Benin); and New York Knicks President of G League Operations Pops Mensah-Bonsu (Ghana).
The league has also announced several end-of-season awards, some of which honor pioneering African NBA legends:
2023 BAL Coach of the Year
AS Douanes head coach Mamadou Gueye led his team to a 3-2 record in the Sahara Conference group phase before defeating Mozambique's Clube Ferroviário da Beira (CFV-Beira) and Petro de Luanda to advance to the Finals. Gueye becomes the first African-born coach to win the award.
2023 BAL Defensive Player of the Year
Stade Malien center Aliou Diarra received The Dikembe Mutombo Trophy after helping his team to a 5-3 record and recording per game averages of 18.3 points, 12.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.
2023 BAL Sportsmanship Award
CFV-Beira guard Will Perry received The Manute Bol Trophy for exemplifying the ideals of sportsmanship and camaraderie.
2023 All-BAL First Team
|
Position |
Player |
Team |
|
Guard |
Jean Jacques Boissy |
AS Douanes |
|
Guard |
Chris Crawford |
AS Douanes |
|
Guard |
Dane Miller Jr. |
S.L.A.C |
|
Forward |
Anunwa Omot |
Al Ahly |
|
Forward |
Aliou Diarra |
Stade Malien |
2023 All-BAL Defensive Team
|
Position |
Player |
Team |
|
Guard |
Childe Dundao |
Petro de Luanda |
|
Guard |
Jean Jacques Boissy |
AS Douanes |
|
Guard |
Samkelo Cele |
Cape Town Tigers |
|
Forward |
Aliou Diarra |
Stade Malien |
|
Center |
Ater Majok |
Petro de Luanda |
The voting panels were comprised of coaches, team captains, media and broadcasters in attendance and varied for each award. The 2023 BAL Ubuntu Award, which is awarded to an individual or organization that has made an impact on the local community during the BAL season, will be announced at a later date.
The 2023 BAL season once again featured the top 12 club teams from 12 African countries playing a total of 38 games in Dakar, Senegal; Cairo, Egypt; and Kigali, Rwanda over three months. Champions from the national leagues in Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia earned their participation in the 2023 BAL season by winning their respective national leagues. The remaining six teams, which came from Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Mozambique, South Africa and Uganda, secured their participation through the Road to the BAL qualifying tournaments conducted by FIBA Africa across the continent from October to November 2022.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Basketball Africa League (BAL).
Contact:
Edwin Eselem
BAL Communications
+221 78 615 4287
EEselem@theBAL.com
About the BAL:
The Basketball Africa League (BAL), a partnership between the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the NBA, is a professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa. Headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, the BAL builds on the foundation of club competitions FIBA Africa has organized across the continent and marks the NBA's first collaboration to operate a league outside North America. Fans can follow the BAL (@theBAL) on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube and register their interest in receiving more information at NBA.com/BAL.
The Cell C Sharks claimed a big victory in Welkom to move to the top of the Currie Cup Premier Division standings, while the Fidelity ADT Lions and Vodacom Bulls secured important wins to keep their playoff hopes alive. The KwaZulu-Natalians took some time to get into the contest against the NovaVit Griiffons on Friday. …
Paul Roos are the bosses of Brug Straat as they defeat Paarl Boys’ High, 35-17 in an epic Sportsmans Warehouse Premier Interschools encounter on Saturday. It was a dream start to this classic encounter for Boishaai as they scored their first try of the game from kick-off. A great turnover by blindside flanker Ruben Dames …
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber had the luxury of naming a group of 33 players for their second preparation camp in Durban from Monday to Wednesday, which included 10 players who featured in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final in Cape Town on Saturday evening, and a host of overseas-based players. The squad is more …
Munster earned their first Vodacom United Rugby Championship title since 2011 in front of a record crowd of over 56 300 fans as they scored a late try to deny hosts, the DHL Stormers, their second successive title at home, thanks to a narrow 19-14 victory in an intense Grand Final in Cape Town on …
A packed Stade Maki, an intimidating crowd and a fired-up home team await the Springbok Women in Antananarivo on Sunday, when they conclude their Rugby Africa Women’s Cup tournament against Madagascar. For Springbok Women captain, Chumisa Qawe, the challenge looms large, but it is one that is highly anticipated by her and the team. “We …
The Springbok Women interim head coach Louis Koen has included former Junior Springbok Women lock Vainah Ubisi in his starting team to play Madagascar in the final game of the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup in Antananarivo on Sunday, and handed Tayla Kinsey a first start in the tournament at scrumhalf. DHL Western Province hooker Lucell …
The teams for the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final have been named with all details of match officials and broadcast information below. DHL Stormers Steven Kitshoff will captain the side for the final time before his departure whilst Conor Murray, Malakai Fekitoa and Calvin Nash all come into the Munster side with Jack Crowley …
Off-the-back on an incredible Wheelchair Rugby European Championship competition at Principality Stadium earlier this month, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is proud to announce it has smashed its target to get 3,000 people playing wheelchair rugby; more than doubling the result with over 7,000 children, teens and adults engaged in wheelchair rugby activities. WRU National …
World Rugby have confirmed the fixtures for the World Rugby U20 Trophy in Kenya, which returns for the first time since 2019. This summer, Scotland U20 will travel to Nairobi, Kenya, to play in the World Rugby U20 Trophy. The tournament, along with the World Rugby U20 Championship (which takes place in South Africa), will …
Springbok forwards Deon Fourie and Marvin Orie make their return to the DHL Stormers team for the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final against Munster at DHL Stadium on Saturday. Both players missed the semifinal due to injury, but will take their places in the DHL Stormers starting line-up for the showpiece match, which kicks …
The Australia-India ICC World Test Championship Final 2023 will have a major incentive for both teams as other than the crowning glory in the longest format of the game, the winners will also collect $1.6 million as the winners’ prize money. The losing finalists will pocket $800,000. The championship decider will be played at The …
At 1541 UTC on Thursday, May 25, while racing in Leg 5 of The Ocean Race, 11th Hour Racing Team activated its Hazard Button to alert Race Control and the wider fleet they had hit something, suspected to be a marine mammal or megafauna. The Team was in the mid-North Atlantic Ocean at 52°N, 35°W …
The experienced Veroeshka Grain will play in her 50th provincial match for DHL Western Province when they host Gauteng visitors, the Mastercard Golden Lions Women, at Athlone Stadium on Friday in the fourth round of the SA Rugby Women’s Premier Division. Grain, who has played in the green and gold for both the Springbok Women …
DHL Western Province have called on the experience of Scarra Ntubeni and Juan de Jongh for the Currie Cup encounter with Fidelity ADT Lions at Athlone Stadium on Friday. Hooker Ntubeni (86 DHL WP caps) and centre De Jongh (81 DHL WP caps) both come into the starting line-up for the clash with the Johannesburg …
The battle for Currie Cup Premier Division semi-final spots reaches a key stage this weekend, and by the end of the 12th round, the playoff picture will be a lot clearer, while the First Division and Mzansi Challenge continues with matches in Kempton Park, East London and Windhoek. The Toyota Cheetahs, Cell C Sharks and …
Clayton Blommetjies is not a story of a shooting star, but rather of a player who’s more akin to a Swiss army knife – versatile, dependable, always ready to step up where needed. His story is one of a triumphant return to the Western Province under the savvy leadership of DHL Stormers coach John Dobson. …
A clinical first half, followed by a less convincing second gave Springbok Women interim Head Coach, Louis Koen, some points to ponder following a 48-0 win over Kenya at the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup tournament in Madagascar on Wednesday. The eight-try romp means that the SA side is yet to concede a try in the …
The Welsh Rugby Union has announced a major investment and partnership in Women’s and Girls rugby to underpin the recent success of the Wales Women’s senior side. Three new Player Development Centres (PDCs) – in East Wales, West Wales and North Wales – will be established to support the development of high potential young players …
The World Rugby U20 Championship 2023 kicks off a month from today on 24 June, when the global age-grade competition returns for the first time since 2019 before the pandemic, with rugby’s next generation of stars in action across the Western Cape in an event in which innovative technologies will be deployed to enhance the …
Six teams from the United Rugby Championship have successfully begun a project using instrumented mouth guards from HITIQ aimed at providing new data to assist with head injury management. URC Grand Finals DHL Stormers are one of three teams participating in the project in South Africa alongside the Vodacom Bulls and Emirates Lions, while Scarlets, …