Hoopers have work to do ahead of BAL playoffs – Odaudu

Despite reaching the 2025 Basketball Africa League playoffs with a game to spare, Rivers Hoopers coach, Ogoh Odaudu says the Nigerian champions still have some work to do to reach their target at the tournament in South Africa in June, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Rivers Hoopers closed out their Kalahari Conference campaign on Sunday with an empathic 79-59 win over Stade Malien, ending the series 4-2, but the coach isn’t satisfied, having set a target that is higher than their third-place finish from last season.

Their four wins came with doubles over Stade Malien and hosts of the Kalahari Conference FUS Rabat while they suffered their two defeats against Egypt’s Al Ittihad Alexandria.

Odaudu and his team have arrived in Nigeria after their run in Morocco and will regroup later for the playoffs.

“We need to up the ante to compete in South Africa. I see the amount of work we have to put in for us to be better in South Africa. We have the time to do all that and hopefully, we will come out better,” the coach said.

The coach had earlier set his sights on the playoffs after sealing their place in South Africa with a game to spare.

“We came in third last year. We are hoping that we are going to go a step further. Everybody wants that for us; they have pushed us, and we want to go a step further than what we did last year.”

To achieve their aim in South Africa, Odaudu will be banking on the brilliance of players like Kelvin Amayo, Peter Olisemeka and Madut Akec who dominated the players’ statistics during the Kalahari Conference.

Amayo, one of the returning members of the bronze-winning team from last season topped the appearance chart with an average of 35.3 minutes per game and also averaging 6.6 assists per game in five matches.

Small Forward Akek was all over the table, averaging 17.8 points per game to lead for average points, making 41 field goals and 17 three points.

Olisemeka led Akec and others in the rebounds chart with an average of 11 rebounds per game just as power forward Raphael Putney led the blocks chart with an average of 1.7 blocks per game.

The playoffs will be held from June 6 to 14 in Pretoria, South Africa.