City Oilers’ Falando Jones finished with a game-high of 22 points, while teammate James Justice Jr added another 20 points for the Ugandan champions. But a 54-36 rebounding disadvantage proved costly for BAL debutant team where Aboubacar Gakou and Ater Majok helped Petro de Luanda to their 2023 BAL season first win.
Gakou and Majok were vital in Petro de Luanda’s 89-71 victory over City Oilers on Thursday night in Cairo. A week after being named MVP of the Angolan League Final, Gakou put on a show from the long rage while Majok made his presence felt on the defensive end. Gakou was 6 for 13 from the floor, including a 4 of 9 shooting from behind the arc to lead the Angolan champions with 16 points.
Majok came off the bench to contribute 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, but he also decorated his Petro de Luanda with 8 points and 5 assists. Petro rushed to a 10-0 run to start the game, but when things looked to be heading to one-sided event, the Oilers fought back and took a 44-42 lead. bThe 18-point win may look an easy one, but Petro de Luanda needed to up their game to earn their first BAL win since losing to US Monastir in the 2022 BAL final in Kigali.
City Oilers’ Falando Jones finished with a game-high of 22 points; James Justice Jr added 20 for the Ugandan champions, but a 54-36 rebounding disadvantage proved costly for BAL debutant team. Its bench outscored City Oilers’ 34-10 to mark the difference between the two sides. During the post-game press conference, Oilers coach Mande Juruni admitted that his team is yet to reach its full potential. “The game got away from us because of the rebounding. They out-rebounded us by 20; We didn’t do a good job there. As we play more games, we are going to clean up most of these.”
For Coach Mande Juruni, it’s unfortunate that one of his best Falando Jones left the court with an injury despite Juruni confidence saying, “He will be alright. There’s nothing really major. Our physios are going to work with him, but he will be ready for the next game.” City Oilers returns to action on Saturday, April 30 to take on host Al Ahly while Petro de Luanda will go up against Ferroviario da Beira.
Author Profile
- Mr. Daniels N. Tatya is an affluent Sports Writer, Commentator and Editor. His over 15 years of covering almost major sporting events makes him a revered and an authority on investigative Sports journalism in Uganda. He can also be reached via [email protected] +256(0)758268315
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