Darlan, Fula inspire Bangui to 96-93 win over Al Ahly Ly

Al Ahly Ly scored 93 points for the second straight time against Bangui SC, but on Wednesday the Libyan champions ended up on the losing side.

Last week, Ivan Jermic’s team trounced Bangui SC 93-71 in the opener of the 2024 Nile Conference.

However, Thierry Darlan, Rolly Fula and Co stepped on the floor knowing that a second straight loss to Al Ahly Ly would have seriously hurt their chances of fighting for a playoff spot in May in Kigali.

Bangui SC did almost everything right from the jump-ball to the final-buzzer to win 96-93.

Fula led the way with 30 points; Darlan added 26 points and 14 rebounds for his third double-double of the season, and the Bangui-based side improved to 2-2.

“The other team came out really aggressive tonight with a lot of energy; They jumped on us a little bit; they made big shots towards the end of the game, and I think the better team won tonight,” said Al Ahly Ly guard Pierre Jackson who finished with 11 points.

Asked about the implications of the loss, Jackson replied: “It hurts for sure, especially since we think we were one of the better teams [in the Nile Conference].”

Playing without Evans Ganapamo, who suffered a foot injury prior to the game, wasn't a major constrain for the Central African Republic champions.

Bangui scored seven unanswered points to start the game before closing the opening quarter with a 16-15 advantage.

They led 47-45 at halftime to show how determined they were to shut down Al Ahly Ly.

And a 20-0 run in the third quarter was everything Francois Enyengue’s team needed to keep their playoffs dream alive.

The Libyan champions responded with a 11-0 run in the fourth quarter and cut the deficit to just two points (85-83) after a technical foul accessed to Enyengue, but their 19-point deficit (64-45) in the third quarter proved costly.

“We didn’t have that type of energy,” Jackson acknowledged.

“We are a team. Even when we miss a player, it doesn’t matter because we play with our hearts,” Darlan pointed out.

He added: “We are always ready to give everything we have. We didn’t practice much before the start of the Nile Conference and we played our first games two days after arriving here.”

Bangui SC captain Jimmy Djimrabaye, who contributed 14 points and 7 rebounds, insisted that “our fight spirit was key. We are young and we can run. We are going to use this energy to help us in this competition.”

Bangui SC will return to action on Friday to fake on City Oilers while Al Ahly Ly will go up against hosts Al Ahly SC.