Alpha Mohamed Bangura (born February 4, 1980) is a Libyan-Sierra Leonean former professional basketball player who competed as a member of the

Libya national basketball team The Libyan national basketball team represents Libya in international basketball matches and is controlled by the ''Kurat As-Sallah al-Leebiyyah'' (Libyan Basketball Federation). Libya has been an official affiliate of FIBA since 1961. They finis ...

at the

FIBA Africa Championship 2009 AfroBasket 2009 was the 25th FIBA Africa Championship, played under the auspices of the Fédération Internationale de Basketball, the basketball sport governing body, and the African zone thereof. At stake were the three berths allocated to Afr ...

Amateur career

Bangura is a graduate of Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland, where he was teammates with fellow professional basketball players Delonte Holland and Eddie Basden. Alpha Bangura played

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

basketball at St. John's University for two years after starting his career at

Monmouth University Monmouth University is a private university in West Long Branch, New Jersey. Founded in 1933 as Monmouth Junior College, it became Monmouth College in 1956 and Monmouth University in 1995 after receiving its charter. There are about 4,400 full- ...

, where he averaged 18.9 points per game as a freshman and earned newcomer of the year. Bangura moved to St. John's after one season at Monmouth to play for coach Mike Jarvis. In 2002, he left the team for unknown reasons.

Professional

Following his college career, Bangura played professional basketball in the United States with the CBA and

USBL The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...

and overseas in Portugal, Israel, Spain, Japan, Puerto Rico, Lebanon, Kuwait, Venezuela, and in the Philippines for the

Air21 Express The Air21 Express were a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) that debuted in the 2011–12 season. The team debuted as the Shopinas.com Clickers during the 2011–12 PBA Philippine Cup. In 2014, the fran ...

. In 2008–09, Bangura spent most of the year with the

Rio Grande Valley Vipers The Rio Grande Valley Vipers are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Edinburg, Texas, and are affiliated with the Houston Rockets. The Vipers play their home games at the Bert Ogden Arena. The Vipers have won fo ...

of the

D-League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

, averaging 18.9 points per game over 26 games before being traded to the

Bakersfield Jam Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's pop ...

for the last nine games of the season. In 2010, he signed with

Sporting Al Riyadi Beirut Al Riyadi Club Beirut ( ar, نادي الرياضي بيروت, lit=Sporting Club Beirut) is a multi-sports club based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the basketball team competes in the Lebanese Basketball League. T ...

playing his first match in the

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

against runners-up

Al Mouttahed Tripoli Al Muttahed ( ar, المتحد طرابلس) also known by its name United Club Tripoli is a Lebanese sports club most known for its basketball program playing in top division for men and women. It is located Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affiliated ...

. He signed for Anibal Zahle in the

Lebanese Basketball League The Lebanese Basketball League is the top-tier professional men's basketball league in Lebanon. It is organized annually as a national championship with playoffs and a national cup by the Lebanese Basketball Federation (FLB). Currently, the leagu ...

for the 2010–11 season. He played his first game against his former team Sagesse. He was signed by the

as their second import for the

2011 PBA Commissioner's Cup The 2011 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner's Cup was the second conference of the 2010–11 PBA season. The tournament began on February 18 and ended on May 8, 2011. The tournament was an import-laden format, which requires an ...

. He led the team to the semi-finals while averaging 28 points per game after beating the Alaska Aces, 2–1. Bangura was signed to the Washington Wizards in 2004. He has also had stints with the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers and Orlando Magic.

International

Bangura was the most consistent member of the Libyan team that finished 11th as the host country in the 2009 FIBA Africa Championship. He averaged 24.4 points per game over six games for the Libyans before his team failed to qualify to the next round. Bangura scored a game-high 25 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the opening game against

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 ...

to send the Libyans into the eighth finals. Bangura again scored a game-high 23 points in a two-point Libyan victory over Egypt in the eighth finals, its only victory in that round.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bangura, Alpha 1980 births Living people Atléticos de San Germán players Bakersfield Jam players CBA All-Star Game players Expatriate basketball people in Spain Libyan men's basketball players Monmouth Hawks men's basketball players Philippine Basketball Association imports S.L. Benfica basketball players Sierra Leonean men's basketball players Small forwards St. John's Red Storm men's basketball players Barako Bull Energy players Sportspeople from Maryland Libyan expatriates in Spain Sierra Leonean expatriates in Spain Tenerife CB players Libyan expatriate basketball people in the Philippines