AS Douanes keep US Monastir under 60 points for the second season in row

The first, and probably the most noticeable takeaway from the last two clashes between AS Douanes and US Monastir, is that the 2022 BAL champions can’t score more than 60 points against “le Gabelous”.

A year ago, AS Douanes eliminated US Monastir from playoff contention with a comprehensive 76-60 win.

On Sunday, and, once again playing in front of a rowdy and electrifying home crowd, AS Douanes prevailed 76-59. This is the first time ever that US Monastir scores less than 60 points in a BAL game.

Despite the 17-point win, AS Douanes’ first triumph in the 2024 Sahara Conference was anything but easy.

Both teams entered the final quarter tied at 46-46, but Mamadou Gueye’s side kept their best for the last 10 minutes. They used a 30-23 run to upset the Tunisian champions for a second season in a row at Dakar Arena.

There’s no time in the history of the BAL where US Monastir have lost two games in row, but that’s where they find themselves with four games left in the conference.

“It’s a difficult position to be in, but we must stay together and try to improve for our next games,” Achraf Ganouni, who finished with 9 points, admitted.

He went on to say that “We lost to a good team that knows how to play basketball. We failed defensively, we made many turnovers and allowed them many offensive rebounds (17).”

US Monastir searched for answers for most of the four quarters, but stopping Abdoulaye Harouna proved challenging.

The Nigerien guard, who is now in his fourth BAL season, came up with a man-of-the-game performance to the home crowd's delight.

After an abysmal performance in Saturday’s 77-68 loss to Rivers Hoopers, Harouna came up clutch.

He shot 10-for-23, including an 8-17 from behind the arc to finish with a game-high of 35 points.

“We were more patient tonight,” Harouna explained when asked about his come-back performance.

Madut Akec scored 9 of his 13 points from behind the arc, and Jean Jacques Boissy, who missed his 5 three-point attempts, contributed 11 points.

US Monastir's dependable scorer Chris Crawford, who suited up for AS Douanes last season, entered the last four minutes of the game with just 2 points before adding 5 more.

George Attitebi Williams led US Monastir in scoring with 16 points off the bench.

Both teams will return to action on Tuesday after a rest day on Monday with US Monastir facing Rivers Hoopers while AS Douanes will go up against APR.