Souleymane Berthe is a special talent

Souleymane Berthe has deservedly entered his name to a list of players to watch out for in the Basketball Africa League’s (BAL) Sahara Conference.

It’s not an easy task to force reigning champions US Monastir to make several defensive adjustments – including a variety of zone defense – to contain a scorer who seems limitless offensively, and Berthe did just that.

And although US Monastir overcame Stade Malien 78-68, Berthe’s name came to stay.

For most of the 34:58 minutes that Berthe spent on the court on Sunday at Dakar Arena, he never looked intimidated against the battle-tested Monastir side who desperately needed to open their Sahara Conference campaign with a win.

Berthe, who opened the scoreline against US Monastir with a fastbreak dunk, shot 12-for-23 to finish with a game-high 34 points – seven points fewer than Terrell Stoglin’s BAL record of 41 points.

Berthe became the second player – after Stoglin – to score over 30 points against US Monastir in the BAL.

He added four rebounds, three assists, three steals and a 29-efficiency rating, the highest in the Sahara Conference so far.

“They played zone defense, but Berthe is really creative. I was not surprised by his performance tonight,” Stade Malien head coach Kaba Kante noted, adding: “He can create shots for everyone around him.”

Before Berthe displayed his talent in the BAL, he was one of the reasons Stade Malien finished 6-2 in the FIBA-run Road to the BAL qualifiers, which ran from October-December 2022.

While showcasing his game during the qualifying rounds, the BAL, he says, was always a focus of his.

“My goal all along was to be able to be part of the BAL family. This has always been a goal of mine and my teammates. Now, we are glad to be living this BAL experience,” Berthe said to the bal.nba.com.

Moroccan international player John Wilkins, who recently joined Stade Malien, said of the young teammate: “Berthe has a bright future. He is a special talent.”

The 6’6” forward who can take on playmaking duties is often seen starting and finishing Stade Malien’s offense.

Selfishness, he argues, is not part of his vocabulary: “We worked really hard to win the [Mali] National Championship, and that’s what we are trying to do in the BAL. If we can’t win the BAL, at least, we will do our best to help Stade Malien to go as far as possible in this championship.”

At the age 22 Berthe has never featured for Mali national teams, but, he says, when the right moment comes, he will step forward if selected.

“I want to be the best player I can be. But, above all, I hope to be able to play in the BAL playoffs.”

Anyone following women’s basketball in Africa may have come across the Berthe surname.

His three young sisters are regular members of Mali national teams.

Twins Saran and Dioume, and Rokiatou Berthe grew up under the watchful of Souleymane, who started playing basketball in 2014.

“There was never an influential basketball figure in our family. I started playing basketball due to my passion for the game. And my sisters joined me,” he said.

Stade Malien have four more games to play in the Sahara Conference against Abidjan Basket Club Fighters, Kwara Falcons, Rwanda Energy Group and AS Douanes.