Kenya’s sole representative at the Elite 16 tournament, Nairobi City Thunder, has been placed in Group A for the upcoming event, which is set to run from November 28 to December 3.
The draw for the tournament was conducted in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire on Sunday, November 24.
The Kenya Basketball Federation announced that Kenya will host the final qualification stage for the Road to BAL 2025 East Division at the Kasarani Indoor Arena in Nairobi.
Eight teams are expected to compete in the tournament with each group sending only two teams to the semifinals.
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The top two teams will then qualify for the main tournament which will be held in Rabat, Morocco in 2025.
The City Thunder, coached by Bradley Ibbs, will participate in a round-robin qualification format in Group A alongside newly crowned South African champions M.B.B, Kriol Stars of Cape Verde who qualified through a wildcard and debutants Malawi’s Braveheart.
Group B will also feature highly competitive teams, including City Oilers of Uganda, Uranani of Burundi, Zambia’s Matero Magic and Fox Sports Basketball from South Sudan.
The City Thunder are on a mission to become the first Kenyan team to ever qualify past the Elite 16 stage.
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Nairobi City Thunder out to make history
Their journey to this point began with an unbeaten run in the national league, followed by their debut in the Road to BAL East Division Group D, where they finished second behind Burundi’s Uranani in the five-team competition held in Kibaha, Tanzania.
The Thunder won three of their four matches, defeating Seychelles’ Beau Vallon Heat (89-58), Madagascar’s GNBC (96-60), and hosts JKT (86-63), while narrowly losing 89-88 to Uranani.
In preparation for the tournament, led by captain Tylor Ongwae, the team continued their strong form, extending their unbeaten run in the league with an 85-59 victory over Ulinzi Warriors on Friday night at Nyayo Gymnasium.
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Road To BAL
Group A
MBB (SA)
Kriol Star (CPV)
Bravehearts (MWI)
Nairobi City Thunder (KEN)
Group B
City Oilers (UGA)
Urunani (BDI)
Matero Magic (ZAM)
Fox Basketball (SSD)
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