Friday, April 19
*Al Ahly Benghazi (Libya) 93-71 Bangui (Central Africa Republic)
*Al Ahly (Egypt) 99-76 City Oilers (Uganda)
Saturday, April 20
*Bangui Vs City Oilers – 5pm
*Al Ahly Vs Al Ahly – 8pm
City Oilers suffered a 99-76 defeat against hosts and defending champions Al Ahly in their opening Nile Conference BAL game on Friday in Cairo, Egypt.
A sluggish start saw the Oilers trailing by 12 points in the first quarter, ultimately leading to a halftime deficit of 53-35.
Despite a stronger second half, including a fourth quarter they evenly contested at 20-20, the Oilers couldn’t turn the tide in their favor.
Their performance was marred by an overreliance on isolation basketball, and allowing Al Ahly numerous open looks on defence.
Key scorers for Al Ahly included Ehab Amin Saleh (16), Mark Steven Lyons (14), Mohamed Elmaraghy (13), Adams Ali (12), Amr Sherif (12), and Tony Rasean (11), all reaching double digits.
On the Oilers’ side, Patrick Rembert led with 21 points, followed by Khaman Maluach (16), Randy Culpepper (15), and Mohammed Bashir (14).
Randy Culpepper was a surprise addition to the Oilers roster, replacing Brandon Ssebirumbi.
City Oilers’ struggles were compounded by missed free throws (12) and poor three-point shooting, going 4-for-18 from deep.
This performance contrasted sharply with their competitive display against the same Al Ahly side last season.
Despite the setback, with two teams securing automatic qualification from the Nile Conference group to the BAL playoffs in Kigali, Rwanda next month, City Oilers still have a chance to advance.
They face Bangui (Central Africa Republic) on Saturday before Al Ahly Bengazi (Libya).
Here is the schedule
