TEAMS QUALIFIED FOR THE PLAYOFFS

The Basketball Africa League (BAL) Sahara Conference came to a close on Tuesday night in Dakar with four teams securing their spots in the most sought-after playoffs in May in Kigali.

Rwanda Energy Group (REG) were crowned Conference champions after beating Ferroviario da Beira 89-74 in Tuesday’s first game. It was REG’s fourth win in five games.

On the way to their coronation, REG beat AS Salé, SLAC, US Monastir and Beira. REG lost to Dakar Univeriste Club.

US Monastir advanced to the last eight as the Conference runners-up.

The Tunisian champions’ only defeat came at the expensive REG.

Former African champions AS Salé finished third in the Sahara Conference thanks to wins over Beira, DUC and SLAC.

SLAC opened their BAL campaign with 85-70 triumph over DUC in the opener of the Conference on March 5. Their second victory was against Beira.

DUC and Beira who finished with 1-4 mark each were eliminated from the playoffs contention.

The Nile Conference will take place in Cairo, Egypt, from April 9 through 19 with six teams battling it out for a playoff berth.

Teams competing in Cairo include reigning BAL champions Zamalek (Egypt), Cobra Sport (South Sudan) Cape Town Tigers (South Africa), Petro de Luanda (Angola), FAP (Cameroon) and Espoir Fukash (DR Congo).