Wade hopes to face Petro again after blowout loss

Petro de Luanda outclassed Cape Town Tigers 87-48 on Sunday, but Zaire Wade remained defiant after the blowout loss.

“This league is so tough because it’s a one-game league,” he said.

“We are only going to see these guys once. Hopefully we are going to see them again in Kigali.”

Wade came off the bench to contribute 9 points and 3 assists, but his effort wasn’t enough to prevent Cape Town from dropping their first loss of the season.

The Angolan champions stepped on the floor on a commanding mode, and extended their lead to as many as 42 points later in the fourth.

Five Petro players scored in double digits, including Childe Dundao (13), Jone Pedro (13), Gerson Goncalves (15), Glofate Buiamba (10) and Damian Hollis (13).

“It’s hard to say who is the best team [in the Nile Conference], unless we have a full season to say,” Wade observed.

He added: “They are undefeated… We have a lot of work to do, but I am not going to give up on that. I still believe we have what it takes to put the pieces right and compete for the BAL Championship.”

When Petro and Tigers faced off in the 2022 Nile Conference, Petro prevailed 90-61.

“[Petro] These guys are the proper example… system wise is where we want to get to,” Wade admitted.

Joshua Hall, the only Cape Town Tigers player to score in double digits, finished with 14 points.

It was Cape Town’s second 39-point loss in the BAL, after losing 106-67 loss to US Monastir in the 2022 BAL Quarter-finals.

Ater Majok made his presence felt in the paint again. He finished with 6 rebounds while swatting 2 shots.

The 2022 BAL Defensive Player of the Year explained how Petro improved to 3-0 and spoke about his role on the team: “We are taking one step at a time. We are trying to enjoy the game; stay together, keep improving.”

“We have a deep bench, we play hard, I came to Petro to be dominant and a physical person,” he said.

Cape Town return to action on Tuesday to take on hosts Al Ahly while Petro de Luanda take on SLAC on Wednesday.