2023 BAL season
The 2023 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 3, is the third season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The season began on 11 March 2023 and will end on 27 May 2023, with the playoffs and finals being played in the BK Arena in Kigali, whic ...
, also known as Road to BAL 2023, was the 3rd edition of the qualifying tournaments for the
Basketball Africa League
The Basketball Africa League (BAL) is Africa's premier men's basketball league. The league consists of twelve teams, each qualified through their domestic competition, similar to the format of the UEFA Champions League. The league is a joint eff ...
. The tournaments were organised by
FIBA Africa
FIBA Africa is a zone within the FIBA basketball association which contains all 54 national African FIBA federations. It was founded in 1961. FIBA Africa maintains offices in Cairo and in Abidjan.
Members
FIBA World Rankings Overview
...
and are held from 10 October to 27 November 2022. The format was similar to the previous two seasons, with a group phase and an elite 16 being held.
Team allocation
On 21 September 2021,
FIBA Africa
FIBA Africa is a zone within the FIBA basketball association which contains all 54 national African FIBA federations. It was founded in 1961. FIBA Africa maintains offices in Cairo and in Abidjan.
Members
FIBA World Rankings Overview
...
announced the teams in the qualifying tournaments as well as the six countries that would qualify directly.
* 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.: standings in the domestic league
* BAL: Qualified as team that was directly qualified in the 2022 BAL season
* QS: Teams from a country that qualified for the
2022 BAL season
The 2022 BAL season, also known as BAL Season 2, was the second season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The season began on 2 March 2022 and ended with the Finals on 28 May 2022. The group phase was played in the Dakar Arena in Dakar and ...
through the qualifying tournaments
* WC: Wild card
Withdrawing teams
Nine teams were drawn in a group for the group phase, but withdrew prior to the start of the games.
Group phase
Group A
The group was initially set to feature six teams, including the champions from
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
. The Reformers of Prisons withdrew, leaving four teams in the group. The games of Group A are held in
Niamey
Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. Niamey lies on the Niger River, primarily situated on the east bank. Niamey's population was counted as 1,026,848 as of the 2012 census. As of 2017, population projections show the capital di ...
,
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languagesVita Club from the DR Congo withdrew due to the lack of financial means.
The games of Group B were held in
Yaoundé
Yaoundé (; , ) is the capital of Cameroon and, with a population of more than 2.8 million, the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region of the nation at an elevation of about 750 metres (2,50 ...
,
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
, and were played from 11 October to 16 October.
Group C
Although initially planned to take place on 25–30 October, the games were rescheduled to 28–30 October. Hawassa City from
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
withdrew.
The games of Group C were schedules to be hosted in
Kampala
Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...
,
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...
in
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
was announced as the new venue.
Group D
The games of Group D were held in
Antananarivo
Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana, is the capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known as Antananarivo-Renivohitra ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "An ...
,
Madagascar
Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
, and are played from 18 to 23 October.
Dekedaha from Somalia and
Foxes
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
from Zimbabwe withdrew, leaving four teams in the group. One day before the start,
Roche-Bois Warriors
Roche-Bois Warriors is a Mauritian basketball club based in the Roche-Bois, a suburb of Port Louis. The team plays in the MBBF Super League, the highest level of basketball in Mauritius. The Warriors have won league championships in 2020 and 2023 a ...
from Mauritius withdrew as well.
Elite 16
In the elite 16, the eight teams from the first round are joined by six teams that qualified in the 2022 qualification. The NBA Academy Africa and
Elan Coton
Elan Coton Basketball Club is a Beninese basketball club based in Cotonou. They play in the Benin Basketball Super League, the premier national league and have won the championship in 2022 and 2023.
The team was previously named Elan Sport Pro, ...
joined as wild cards.
Draw
The draw was held on 3 November 2022 on
Abidjan
Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N’ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the economic capital of the Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of overall population of the country, ...
.
West Division
The games of the East Division are held in
Abidjan
Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N’ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the economic capital of the Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of overall population of the country, ...
,
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
, and are played from 15 to 20 November.
Group A
Group B
Final round
= Semi-finals
=
= Third place game
=
= Final
=
East Division
The games of the East Division are held in
Ellis Park Arena
The Ellis Park Arena (formerly Standard Bank Arena and often acknowledged as Ellis Park Indoor Arena) is an indoor sporting arena located in Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, o ...
in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, and are played from 22 to 27 November. Initially, it was announcned that games would be held in
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
.
Group A
The games played by the NBA Academy Africa are not scored and are ineligible to qualify for the next round; however, games against the team will be used for their opponents' standings.
Group B
Matero Magic
The Matero Magic are a Zambian semi-professional basketball club from the Matero neighbourhood of Lusaka. The team plays in the Zambia Basketball League and has won the championship a record 10 times. The Magic features many players who are also p ...
from Zambia were given a wild card to join Group B, after
Cobra Sport
Cobra Sports Club, commonly known as Cobra Sport, are a South Sudanese basketball team based in Juba, South Sudan. The team was established in 2017 and plays in the Central Equatoria State Basketball Association (CESBA). Cobra has won three natio ...
from South Sudan withdrew.
Final round
= Semi-finals
=
Third place game
Final
Statistics
Individual statistic leaders
''Note: statistics from six games in Group A, as well as two games in the final round of the Eltie 16 East Division are missing.''