White Jr’s heroics send BAL debutant Tripoli to the 2025 final

Fabian White Jr. joined Al Ahli Tripoli just days before the Basketball Africa League (BAL) playoffs in 2025. He became the Libyan champions’ hero in a hard-fought semifinal against Rwanda’s APR.

The 26-year-old power forward played the entire 40 minutes, doing everything for Al Ahli Tripoli.

He shot 9-for-14 from the floor, including 3-for-6 from deep; grabbed seven rebounds; and dished out two assists.

White Jr.’s heroics were vital for the BAL debutant to reach the 2025 final. He finished with a game-high 23 points.

White Jr. was joined by Caleb Agada, who came off the bench to score 17 points, and by Mohamed Sadi and Jaylen Adams, who finished with 13 points each.

Assem Marei scored the opening basket (2–0) and finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

This was the third matchup between Al Ahli Tripoli and APR this season, with the Rwandan champions showing signs of a potential comeback and possible upset throughout the first three quarters.

Before the semifinal clash, Aliou Diarra was 0-for-12 from the three-point line. He sank one that gave APR a short-lived 51-47 lead.

However, the story of this matchup would be incomplete without mentioning three key moments.

First, Al Ahli Tripoli held APR scoreless for four minutes, going on a 12-0 run to take a 36-29 lead at halftime.

Second, APR returned from halftime with a sense of urgency, outscoring their opponent 11-2.

However, after Nuni Omot’s three-pointer gave APR a 40-38 lead, Al Ahli Tripoli head coach Fouad Abou Chacra called a timeout with 6:35 minutes left in the third quarter. The game was never the same for APR again; they found themselves trailing by as many as 14 points.

APR, usually a decent three-point shooting team, struggled to find the basket from deep and finished with a 4-for-18 shooting percentage from behind the arc.

Nuni Omot led APR in scoring with 22 points. Chasson Randle, Obadiah Noel, and Aliou Diarra all finished with 13 points apiece.

"One more win! One win!" the Al Ahli Tripoli players sang in unison in the locker room.

"Fabian joined us late, but he played as if he had been part of the team and our game plan for years. He is not only a great player, but also an even better person. I love him,” said Al Ahli Tripoli captain Mohamed Sadi.

Sadi is in his second BAL season, having played for AS Douanes in the inaugural season.

He said it’s time to make history for Libya.

“Since day one, I have been saying that we are going to make history for Libya,” Sadi noted.

Last season, the Libyan team Al Ahli Ly finished second.

Sadi acknowledged the challenges of a BAL final but insisted that they have a goal to accomplish.

"Al Ahli Ly Benghazi was in a similar situation last season. This shows how much basketball has improved in Libya," Sadi explained, adding: "We have been away from our families for almost two months, but we have made them proud."

APR team captain Willian Robeyns admitted that Tripoli was too hard to handle.

"We fought until the end, but they were the better team today," he said.

Al Ahli Tripoli reached the BAL final for the first time, while APR will now compete for third place.