ABIDJAN (Ivory Coast) – Kevin Murphy produced a historic performance to send Al Ahli Tripoli Sport Club into Basketball Africa League (BAL) season 5 by defeating a resilient ABC Fighters 80-76 Saturday in Abidjan.
Al Ahli Tripoli reached the decisive semi-final as the only undefeated team with a 5-0 mark and extended their unbeaten run to 6-0.
The meeting was intense and balanced.
Neither team had a double-digit lead, although Tripoli had the biggest advantage (nine points) before the break.
Kevin Murphy scored 34 points, Deng Angok Yak 14, Mohamed Sadi and Kavel Bigby-Williams 12.
Kevin Murphy was the soul of Al Ahli Tripoli in the decisive match against ABC Fighters
THE TURNING POINT OF THE MATCH: Nothing could have better illustrated the level of balance in the game than the score of 43-43 at halftime.v
Five minutes after the start of the third quarter, ABC took advantage of Tripoli (12-6) to lead 55-49. Although the Ivory Coast champions led 65-63 at the end of the third quarter, the game was not yet decided.
With seven minutes left, Zamba Camara finished a break with a two-handed dunk, extending the Fighters’ lead to 72-65, prompting Al Ahli Tripoli coach Fouad Chakra to to call a timeout seven minutes from the end.
Murphy hit two of his five three-pointers later in the fourth quarter, including one that gave Al Ahli Tripoli its first lead (77-76) in the second half.
Mohamed Sadi then gave the Libyans the advantage (79-76), before Murphy sealed the victory on the free throw line.
THE HERO: His 34 points in such a crucial game speak volumes about the impact of Kevin Murphy. He managed a series of 11 out of 24 in 38 minutes of play.
WHAT THE NUMBERS SAY: Jaylen Bland was the one-man force for the hosts, hitting 5 of 7 three-point attempts to finish the first half as the only Fighters player in double figures with 15 points.
However, he was held to just three more points in the second half.
Al Ahli Tripoli did not lose a match until the title game against Stade Malien on Sunday 10 November.
CONCLUSION : ABC Fighters fought for a second BAL qualification after 2023, but Tripoli became the second Libyan team – since Al Ahly Benghazi – to qualify for the BAL.
It was not the wild public that prevented Al Ahli Tripoli from finishing an exceptional season that began on their home field in October.
They suffered, they fought, but they only had one goal in mind, and the ABC Fighters couldn’t stop them from extending their lead to 6-0.
On Sunday, Al Ahli Tripoli will face Stade Malien in the Road to BAL 2025 West Division title match, while ABC Fighters will face Kadji Sport Academy in the third place match.
FIBA
