US Monastir overwhelmed Kriol Star 88–72 in Dakar behind standout performances from Babacar Sane, PJ Hardy, and Firas Lahyani. Monastir’s suffocating defence and three-point shooting proved too much in this Basketball Africa League showdown
Last Updated on
April 30, 2025
The game got off to a slow start as both teams relied heavily on the 3-point shooting. Ivan Almeida capitalized on the space afforded him as he erupted for 12 straight points, draining four from beyond the arc. Patrick McGlynn added to that tally when he converted his first shot off the bench.
Monastir struggled early in the game when their captain, Radhouane Slimane, struggled to find the bottom of the net with multiple attempts from beyond the arc. Still, with that pedigree, he could not be denied as he sank the first 3 for his side, leading Osiris Eldridge to get involved. Their young Senegalese star, Babacar Sane, gave them the momentum when he drained the 3 to close off the quarter and bring Monastir to within 1 of Kriol with the score at 18-17.
Sane, who had a big game against Petro de Luanda with 24 points and six rebounds off the bench, brought much of that energy and physicality to this Tunisian side when he added five more points to his tally. Perhaps the most impressive part of this second quarter was Monastir's increase in defensive tempo.
They played with a lot more vigour and aggression, making it very difficult for Kriol to find any easy bucket in the paint. This led to Kriol resorting to perimeter shooting, where they struggled. It was all left to captain Joel Almeida, who managed to score 2 3-pointers, but that was not enough as they scored only 12 points in the quarter while Monastir scored 28.
It was a collective effort from the Tunisian side, as they had multiple scorers and playmakers. They closed off the half in style behind the efforts of Firas Lahyani, who was instrumental on both ends of the floor. Monastir ended the quarter with the score at 45-30.
Despite a slow start, they shot the ball well with back-to-back 3-pointers from Eldridge and PJ Hardy. As if this was not enough, Deng Acuoth rocked the rim with an emphatic dunk and a 3-pointer to take Monastir up by 20, the game's biggest lead.
This run seemed to take the air out of the lungs of the Kriol team as they looked discombobulated and unable to string together a series of passes to get an open look. It was not until McGlynn scored a 3 to get them back in the swing. However, Acuoth threw a perfectly timed pass to Tarekeyi Edogiwho completed the alley-oop to close the quarter at 64-48 in favour of Monastir.
The Tunisians knew that they could not take comfort in their lead but should continue to apply the same suffocating pressure in the fourth to win the game. Babacar Sane, who sat out for most of the third quarter, came back on with his energy, and it showed when he converted the 3-pointer from Hardy's pass. Kriol responded as they went on a run to return the game to 14 points.
PJ Hardy and Joel Almeida dazzled the crowd when they exchanged some 3-pointers before McGlynn converted two from the line and followed that up with back-to-back 3-point shots to bring his team to within 11 of Monastir with just over 3 minutes to go. Firas Lahyani scored 6 points in the dying minutes of the game to secure the win for Monastir. The Tunisian side closed the game with an 88-72 victory.
Ivan Almeida led all players with 22 points and 12 rebounds, but that was not enough as Deng Acuoth (13 points), PJ Hardy (19 points), Firas Lahyani (15 points) and Babacar Sane (13 points) carried the offensive load for Monastir to give them a comfortable win.
Mehdi Sayeh had the following to say after the game:
Kriol is a very good team with a lot of talent and we did not start well in the first 5minutes but we adjusted well defensively and made the lead 15 points and we managed the game… We know that the average point is very important in this league so we tried to stay focused to keep this advantage.
They are aware that their next game will be very difficult as they take on an experienced team in the defending champions, Petro de Luanda. A win against them will place the Tunisians in a good spot to qualify for Pretoria.
[Imagery and Photography Courtesy of BAL]
