Ngaifei powers short-handed Bangui SC to crucial win over City Oilers

As soon as the final buzzer sounded Omega Ngaifei was mobbed by his Bangui SC teammates in recognition of his game-changing performance in Friday’s 91-76 win over City Oilers.

From the moment, Ngaifei came off the bench for Nyang Wek 2:47 minutes into the game, Bangui SC gained what they lacked with the absence of injured Evans Ganapamo and Emeka Nwabuzor.

The 23-year-old Ngaife remained on the floor for the remainder of the game, and, as a result, Bangui SC edged closer to the playoffs in May in Kigali.

The 6-foot-8 power forward battled it out on both ends of the floor to complete his herculean performance with game-high of 22 points and 11 rebounds.

“He was the x-factor,” an elated Nwabuzor said, “He got Khaman [Maluach] in foul trouble; he did what he was supposed to do. He scored, he rebounded, he made his jump-shots, free-throws, it’s something that I have seen in him since I first saw him, and I am glad that he did it in the biggest game.”

Kurt Wegscheider had his second start of the 2024 Nile Conference, and the opportunity couldn’t have come at the most challenging time as Bangui needed another major performance to boost their playoff aspirations.

Wegscheider contributed 21 points, Rolly Fula added 20, and Thierry Darlan, who got in foul trouble early in the game contributed 13 points to help Bangui SC beat City Oilers for the second time in the group phase and improve to 3-2.

Nwabuzor said that the hard-fought win confirmed his team’s tenacity. “It speaks of the depth of our team; how good and resilient we are. We have guys that can step up at any moment,” He said.

City Oilers led 12-5 early in the opening quarter, but Bangui used a 14-0 run to close the period with 19-12 lead not to trail again.

The Central African Republic champions went to the halftime break with a 46-34 advantage but not before enjoying their largest lead (44-26) of the game in the second quarter.

Two days after causing the biggest upset in the 2024 Nile Conference by beating reigning champions Al Ahly SC, City Oilers sought to keep their momentum, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Even Patrick Rembert’s 3-pointer that tied the game at 68-68 with seven minutes left wasn’t enough to stop Ngaifei and co as Wegscheider muscled his way to the basket give Bangui SC a 70-68 lead right after.

Darlan’s 3-pointer with three minutes helped Bangui to an 84-74 lead, which determined the outcome of the game.

Rembert finished with a team-high of 21 points; Randy Culpepper Sr and Dane Miller Jr. finished with 16 points, but the Oilers dropped to 1-4 with a game left in the conference.

“Am very proud of our team and how we played.We are going to Kigali,” Nwabuzor said.

The 2024 Nile Conference concludes on Saturday with Bangui SC facing Al Ahly SC while City Oilers will go up against Al Ahly Ly.