Rivers Hoopers’ heroics at the just concluded Basketball Africa League (BAL) did not go unnoticed, as three of its starters have been named to the All-Tournament teams released on Wednesday.
Experienced point guard and lethal shooter Will Perry was named to the All-BAL First Team for his outstanding performances in the fourth season of the tournament, while the duo of Kelvin Amayo and Devine Eke were selected to the All-BAL Second Team.
The 29-year-old American, who won the Manute Bol BAL Sportsmanship Award for the second season in a row, is the only Rivers Hoopers player in the competition’s First Team, where he is joined by the quartet of Marcus Crawford (US Monastir), Aliou Diarra (FUS de Rabat), Samkelo Cele (Cape Town Tigers), and Lual Lual Acuil Jr. of Al Ahly Benghazi, who was crowned the tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) as well as Defensive Player of the Year.
🏆 Announcing the 2024 All-BAL First Team! 🌟
Let’s give it up for the top ballers of the season. Congratulations to all! #BAL4 pic.twitter.com/c9Ko9CGgvo— Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 5, 2024
Perry led the King’s Men in points per game as he ended the tournament averaging 17.2 points, the ninth most in the competition, with 5.4 assists and 2.0 steals. He shot 44.8% from the field, 38% from the 3-point line, and a tournament-leading 91.9% on free throws, as he only missed three of his 37 attempted free throws.
🌟🏀 The 2024 All-BAL Second Team!
Congrats to Devine Eke, Ehab Amin Saleh, Harouna Abdoulaye, Kelvin Amayo, and Majok Machar Deng for their outstanding performances this season! #BAL4 pic.twitter.com/20O6KbnqY6
— Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 5, 2024
Meanwhile, Amayo and Eke were selected for the second team alongside Harouna Abdoulaye (AS Douanes), Majok Machar Deng (Al Ahly Benghazi), and Ehab Amin Saleh (Al Ahly).
Amayo ended the tournament second in minutes averages, assists averages, and steals averages. He shot 33.5% from the floor, as he led the tournament in field-goal attempts (185) and was third in field-goals made (62). He also led in 3-point attempts (121) and 3-points made (27).
The 32-year-old, who won a bronze medal for the second straight year at the BAL, having previously done so with Stade Malien, finished the tournament averaging 16 points, 5.2 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2.7 steals per game while averaging 37 minutes of action.
Eke, on the other hand, finished third in minutes averages (36.3), fourth in rebounds averages (11.3), and joint eighth in steal averages (2.0). He attempted the second most field goals (157) and also made the second most (67) as he ended the tournament by shooting 42.7% from the field.
The 27-year-old D’Tigers forward averaged 16.6 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 2.0 steals per game through ten games at the BAL.
The Rivers Hoopers, who finished third at the BAL after beating South Africa’s Cape Town Tigers to become the first Nigerian team to earn a medal at the competition, were the only team with three players selected across the BAL first and second teams, with Al Ahly Benghazi coming in second with two selections.
