RABAT, Morocco -- Basketball Africa League (BAL) Kalahari Conference hosts FUS Rabat have claimed their first win of the tournament, beating Stade Malien 92-72 on Tuesday.
Nisre Zouzoua led the scoring with 22 points as FUS produced some silky-smooth offense to counter occasional defensive lapses.
Both teams had lost their opening two games, to Rivers Hoopers of Nigeria and Al Ittihad of Egypt, but a sizeable crowd nonetheless turned out to watch FUS despite their disappointments over the weekend. This was something that Ayoub Nouhi gave thanks for in a post-match interview, saying: "We're so, so grateful and very thankful for the love of the fans. I think they are the best fans in Africa and I'm very proud of being a Moroccan."
Said El Bouzidi's side quickly gave the fans something to cheer, racing into a 7-0 lead.
Stade Malien had shown surprising grit in their 72-69 defeat to championship favourites Al Ittihad, and they showed similar fight to reduce the deficit to 13-10 before FUS went on a 16-point run with Zouzoua, John Jordan and Nouhi leading the charge. At the end of the first quarter, FUS led 29-12.
The game appeared all but won early in the second quarter, but FUS took their foot off the gas and allowed Cartier Diarra to lead a Stade Malien fightback. By halftime, the hosts' lead had been trimmed to 45-41.
FUS fired on all cylinders again in the opening minutes of the third quarter, with Zouzoua, in particular, on top of his game as the hosts assumed a 57-43 lead. However, FUS once again allowed Stade Malien to creep back into the game. Mouhamed Doumbya claimed the lead scoring role for Stade Malien as they pulled within six points at 59-53.
Zouzoua continued to lead Rabat out of trouble, providing the assist for a Mouhamadou Diagne alley-oop dunk and then sinking a three himself after Stade Malien responded. By the end of the third quarter, however, the game was once again too close for comfort. FUS led 66-60.
FUS started the fourth quarter well, moving the ball with purpose and quickly taking a 72-60 lead through a Jordan three. When Abdelkarim El Haoua sank another three with 7:12 on the clock to stretch the lead back to 15 points, Les Blancs de Bamako could see the writing on the wall.
FUS suffered a late blow as El Haoua limped off with a sore ankle, but El Bouzidi said in his post-match press conference that it was not a serious injury. Given this is a critical point in the season, this is welcome news for the hosts.
Only two teams from each of the three BAL conferences will automatically progress to the playoffs in Pretoria, South AFrica, while the two best third-placed teams will progress. FUS are third in the Kalahari Conference, and they will not want to leave their fate in anyone else's hands.
The four teams in the conference will now play each other again, and the hosts will hope for a better return in their fixtures against Rivers Hoopers and Al Ittihad.
For Stade Malien, the way back is long but hope is not lost in an increasingly unpredictable league.
The BAL airs on ESPN's channels in Africa (SuperSport 218 and 219, Starsat 248).