Odaudu eyes Hoopers progress after tough BAL draw

Rivers Hoopers head coach Ogoh Odaudu says his team has been placed in a tough conference in this season’s Basketball Africa League but believes they will be better in the tournament this year than they were in the previous edition when they finished third, NewsNGR Sports Extra reports.

The Nigerian champions were drawn against hosts FUS Rabat, debutants Al Ittihad, and 2023 third-place team Stade Malien in the Kalahari Conference which will be played from April 5 to 13 in Morocco.

Hoopers picked this year’s ticket by retaining their Nigeria Premier Basketball League title with a commanding 71-54 win over Hoops and Read Basketball Club in the playoffs final last November in Port Harcourt.

Speaking to the Rivers Hoopers media after the BAL announcement, Odaudu said, “It is a difficult conference. But just like last year, we are focused on getting out of the group stage. We won’t do anything different from what we did last season.

“If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. We are technically going to approach the same target by doing the same stuff we did last year. Keep it simple and do the little things we need to do.”

Odaudu also expressed disappointment at not being able to re-sign Will Perry, who played a pivotal role in the team’s third-place finish last season. But remained optimistic the team will assemble a better squad ahead of the 2025 season.

“Unfortunately, we lost Will to another team, but we have tried to replace him, and we will get a point guard that will be able to do the things he (Will) did for us last year.”

“We have some upgrades in some positions, and Rivers Hoopers will be a better team than it was last year,” Odaudu added.

The KingsMen have been scheduled to play the season opener against Stade Malien on April 5 in Rabat, Morocco.

Rivers Hoopers will be making their third appearance at the 2025 Basketball Africa League.

They featured in the inaugural season held in 2021 and last season’s edition, where they finished third.