Dean Murray is taking Rwanda Energy Group (REG) to Dakar, Senegal, ahead of the forthcoming Basketball African League (BAL) 2023 whose Sahara Conference Group Phase regular season tips off March 11. The Rwandan representatives have made major trades to boost their firepower in an attempt to get ready for yet another impressive show when they rub shoulders with some of the best teams on the continent in a conference they topped during the 2022 season. The team was placed in the Sahara conference along with US Monastir, AS Douanes, ABC Fighters, Kwara Falcons and Stade Malien. Times Sport looks at the key players to watch out for when BAL regular season tips off in Dakar. Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza (REG) The 24-year-old has already reunited with the REG roster preparing for the BAL 2023, in a sensational return from which he looks forward to writing a new story with the team at the elite continental club basketball showpiece. Nshobozwa left REG in October 2022 to sign for rivals APR but the former added him in their roster for BAL because they know what exactly he can offer at big stages. If you have been following the domestic league, it is no surprise that the point guard is one of the hottest basketball talents that Rwanda has at its disposal. Standing at 1.83m, Nshobozwa’s speed, hard work, attacking ferocity and defensive acumen make up for his diminutive nature. Nshobozwa was named on the All-Defensive team of the BAL 2022 after he averaged 1.7 steals per game, 3.7 average defensive rebounds, 14.2 points per game, and 3.5 assists per game, making him one of the top performers for REG in the tournament. With his consistency, there is more to come from the youngster when he returns to action in Dakar in March. Terrell Stoglin (AS Douanes) Stoglin became the first player to score 40 points in the Basketball Africa League (BAL) and helped former club AS Sale fight back from a 16-point deficit to beat AS Police 88-79 during the tournament’s 2022 season. The American anticipates a more entertaining show when he returns to the tournament with Senegalese side AS Douanes who will be playing at home. Jerome Randle (US Monastir) Randle has a vast experience in Basketball that convinced Monastir to add him on their roster, having plied his trade in top leagues like Israel’s Barak Netanya and NBA side Dallas Mavericks in December 2011. With such exposure, he can be a key weapon for the Tunisians who want nothing but to defend their BAL title. Chris Obekpa (ABC Fighters) The Nigerian center joined ABC Fighters from Guinean outfit SLAC for which he featured in the previous edition of the BAL. His defensive abilities make him one to watch at the Sahara Conference. In 2022, while playing for SLAC, Obekpa averaged 4.6 blocks per game in the same Conference, a performance he wants to improve in the colors of ABC Fighters. Samuel Dada (Kwara Falcons) Dada is expected to be Falcons' star player at the BAL. He was the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the Nigerian league in 2022. A glimpse of his abilities were showcased as his team clinched the league in November 2022, making key contributions when his side beat Nigeria Customs in the finals, where for example in one of the games, he scored a double-double of 10 points and 19 rebounds, and added four blocks. The Falcons will again be relying on Dada’s services, expecting him to produce some magic moments during the star-studded Sahara Conference regular season in Dakar. Mike Fofana (Stade Malien) Standing at 2.06m, the American’s formidable height put him in position to be a menace against opposing forwards. Fofana’s track record in rebounding where he, for instance, bagged 12 rebounds for Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks’ in a 2018 game, hits alert as one to fear ahead of the Sahara Conference regular season. He will pretty much be one to watch on the Malian side.
