Although BAL debutant Cape Town led the former African
champions by five in the opening quarter, the Angolan champions’ numbers spoke
volumes about their BAL intentions this year.
The 29-point winning margin is largest in the BAL 2022 so far,
and Petro’s 58 rebounds have become the most any team has recorded in the
current season.
The Tigers competed for most of the first two quarters, but
giving up 16 three-pointers, and struggling to protect the perimeter line
proved costly for the South African champions. And to make matters worse for
the Tigers, they could only convert eight of their 15 free-throw attempts.
Carlos Morais was 5-for-11 from behind the arc to finish
with a game-high 23 points, Olimpio Cipriano scored his 12 points from long
range, and Childe Dundao contributed 11 points to complete Petro’s trio with 10
points or more each.
Petro’s 16 three-pointers are the second highest in the
current BAL season. Rwanda Energy Group (REG) hold the record for most
three-pointers after hitting 20 in a 94-89 win against Ferroviario da Beira in
Dakar in March.
Evan Ganapamo led the way for Cape Town with 17 points, and
three other Tigers – Ben Myourgh, Myck Kabongo, and Nkosinathi Sibanyoni
contributed 10 points each.
But playing without former NBA player Jamel Artis and Billy
Preston – who sat out for health concerns - proved challenging for Cape Town.
“This wasn’t our best performance, but under the circumstances,
we did very well,” said Cape Town Tigers Head Coach Relton Booysen.
“I like the way the guys fought. We held Petro for two
quarters until the third quarter.”
Petro de Luanda led for most of the regulation, and coach
Neto was allowed to use 11 players who scored at least one point each.
One of the biggest differences between the Tigers and Petro
was the two teams’ rotations with Petro’s bench outscoring Cape Town’s 37-14