PREVIEW - US Monastir v Rivers Hoopers; APR v AS Douanes

Games five and six of the 2024 Sahara Conference taking place at Dakar Arena will mark the end of the first round of the conference.

But what’s at stake in Tuesday’s two games?

Well, there are three unequivocal scenarios in the build-up to Tuesday’s games:

In the first game of the day, US Monastir play Rivers Hoopers at 16:00 GMT. Three hours later, AS Douanes face APR at 19:00 GMT.

US Monastir v Rivers Hoopers

After four games, Rivers Hoopers remain as the only undefeated team in the conference.

One more win for the the Port Harcourt-based team will help the Nigerian champions inch closer to securing a spot in the playoffs scheduled to take place later this month in Kigali.

The 2022 BAL champions US Monastir (0-2), on the other hand, will chase their first win of the ongoing Sahara Conference when they take on the high-flying Rivers Hoopers.

A third straight loss in the conference would mean the Tunisian champions will need to do everything in their power to dig themselves out of the hole to try to relaunch their playoffs aspirations.

“If we improve on our togetherness, I am sure we’ll be just fine. We must win the four games.” said US Monastir forward Sadio Doucoure, who has come off the bench in the first two games of the conference.

Doucoure’s statement is echoed by head coach Mohamed Kirdani who said: “We have lost two games that have hurt us a lot, but we still have four more games and if we win them, we can qualify [to the playoffs] easily. I can promise that US Monastir will get back on track.”

APR v AS Douanes

In the second game of the day, hosts AS Douanes and Rwanda’s APR will face off for the first time in the history of the BAL.

Both teams share a 1-1 mark, and the winner will topple the losing side at the end of the first round of the conference.

Before facing APR, AS Douanes had an impressive 76-59 win over US Monastir.

In addition to the team’s high morale, Mamadou Gueye’s men count on a tireless home crowd that has been supportive of the team through thick and thin.

APR head coach Mazen Track insists that he will stick to his team’s game plan: “I don’t see any major changes for us. We’ll play the substitution pattern that we continue to have. We are going to the next game knowing what we have to do to win. After two games, we have not shot the ball well from the three.”

Watch today’s games on the BAL website, NBA App, BAL’s YouTube channel and get additional coverage on the league’s social media platforms.