Al Ittihad extend unbeaten run with 91-68 win over Stade Malien

Four days after forcing Al Ittihad to their narrowest win so far in the 2025 Kalahari Conference (72-69), Stade Malien's resilience and fighting spirit were nowhere to be seen on Thursday.

The Malian champions challenged Al Ittihad for most of the first quarter, but that's as long as they lasted before the Alexandria-based side turned it into a one-sided affair, winning 91-68.

It was the biggest margin of victory in the conference so far, as Al Ittihad improve to 4-0 and advance to the 2025 BAL Finals.

Stade Malien outrebounded Al Ittihad 44-39; they led by four (6-2) early in the game, but that effort wasn’t enough to avoid their fourth loss in as many games.

They disintegrated defensively right at the end of the opening quarter.

Only two other teams in the five-year history of the BAL have lost four consecutive games.

Nigeria's Kwara Falcons finished 0-5 in 2023, and a year earlier, DR Congo's Espoir Fukash opened their season with a 96-92 win over South Africa's Cape Town Tigers before losing four straight games.

George Kind paced Al Ittihad with a team-high 22 points, Deng Deng added 15 off the bench and Majok Deng, a the most productive sixth man of the conference so far, was impressive with 11 points in just 11:16 minutes on the floor.

Mahamane Coulibaly was a one-man show for Stade Malien, finishing with a game-high 25 points.

Deng Deng, who was one rebound shy of a double-double, later appreciated Al Ittihad's team effort.

"We are here for a reason. We are not just playing for the conference, we are playing for the BAL playoffs," he said.

The South Sudan international player went on to say that the Egyptian champions are on the right track:
"This win for the management of Al Ittihad for putting together such a team. And credit to my teammates for staying strong,” Deng explained, adding: "It's really hard when you are 3-0 and stay strong and continue despite these teams are hungry for a win".

Deng Deng acknowledged that Stade Malien had put up a fight.

"Hats off to the Mali team. They fought really hard throughout the tournament, it's just unfortunate for them today. I am sure they will come back strong next year.

Al Ittihad are now the first team to reach the BAL 2025 finals.

What comes next?

"Right now, we're building [team] chemistry, we've got two more games and we're going to take them the same way we took the last four games. We're going to stay strong and hopefully go 6-0,” Deng pointed out.

All Ittihad face Rivers Hoopers on Saturday, while Stade Malien take on FUS Rabat.