In front of a roaring Nairobi crowd at the Kasarani Indoor Gymnasium, Nairobi City Thunder smashed Ferroviario da Beira 109-70 to seal a second straight berth in Africa’s premier club competition, a night that will be remembered as the moment of Nairobi City Thunder’s BAL Qualification.
It was the statement win a confident group had promised all week, and the performance that confirmed Thunder’s rise from promising debutants to an East Division force. The semifinal in the Road to BAL Elite 16 was decisive, the path to the final was clear, and with it came the automatic ticket to the 2026 Basketball Africa League.
How Thunder overpowered Beira
Thunder went for the throat from the opening tip. They controlled the tempo early, won the first quarter 22-12, then stretched out with a 30-20 second quarter for a 52-32 halftime lead that sent the building into a frenzy. The hosts returned from the break and tore the game open with a 31-16 third period for an 83-48 cushion, a burst that reflected both their depth and their command of transitions.
Albert Odero was untouchable. He scored a game-high 32 points in under 24 minutes, including 26 before halftime, and set the tone with a fast-break layup followed by back-to-back threes in the first five minutes. He had 10 in the opening quarter alone, the spark that turned a tight start into a growing gulf that Beira never bridged. The composure was contagious, and the advantage kept swelling.
Once the lead ballooned past 30, coach Bradley Ibs dipped deep into his bench in the fourth. David Deng Kongor Deng buried three long-range daggers to push Thunder to 99, then youngster Powell Owino sliced through two defenders to nudge the hosts past the century mark. The crowd rode every possession, a celebration of a job done with style.
The numbers underlined the dominance. Thunder controlled the paint 56-32, they were cleaner in the glass battles where Beira had more offensive boards 17-11, yet the Kenyans still won second-chance points 16-12, a snapshot of their focus on efficiency and shot quality under pressure. Even when Beira’s Celio Chirombe opened the third quarter with a bucket, Thunder simply ran again, with Eugene Adera and Lance Thomas joining Odero to pile on the points.
The road through Nairobi
The semifinal blowout was built on a sharp group stage. Thunder opened the tournament with an 89-62 win over Uganda’s Namuwongo Blazers, a game that was level 40-40 before the hosts ripped it open after halftime. It was the right start for a team carrying the weight of expectation, the right message for a city that has taken ownership of this journey.
Then came the first real test, an 86-83 thriller against Johannesburg Giants that secured top spot in Group A. Odero delivered 21 points with the winning basket, Tylor Ongwae added 18 points and six assists, Lance Robert Thomas chipped in 14, and Adera had 11. The Giants threw everything back, especially through Dhieu Abwok Deing with 27, plus 25 from Joshua Ozabor and 15 from Nkosinathi Sibanyoni, and still Thunder found the last play. The 1,798 fans inside Kasarani did the rest, the noise carried Thunder home.
Finishing first mattered. It shaped the semifinal bracket and confirmed a plan that coach Ibs had hinted at after edging the Giants. He praised Beira’s chemistry, acknowledged their threat, and noted how important it was to avoid a semifinal against the form team from the other group, Dar City Basketball Team, a side no one wanted to meet with a ticket on the line.
“It really feels good to finish top of the group. It means we play the second team in the other group, and to be honest, no one wants to play Dar City with a trip to BAL on the line,” coach Bradley Ibs said after the 86-83 win over Johannesburg.
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Beira pedigree and the semifinal stakes
Ferroviario da Beira arrived with pedigree. Coached by Nilton Joaquim Manheira, the Mozambican club targeted a third BAL appearance after featuring in 2022 and 2023. They had gone 4-1 in their Road to BAL group and brought a balanced core featuring Joshua Thomas, Ke’Tarrious Bouchum, and Helton Ubisse, a trio known for physicality, perimeter defense, and transition scoring.
Group B showed both Beira’s quality and the narrow margins at this level. Dar City topped the pool after an 87-78 win over Beira, powered by Youssou Ndoye with 22 points, Nisre Zouzoua with 21, and double-figure contributions from Raphiael Putney and Solo Diabate with 14 each, plus Deng Angok Yak Deng with 11. Beira replied through Ubisse with 17 and Joshua Thomas with 16, proof of the punch they could pack when given a rhythm.
Those stakes crystallized on semifinal day at Kasarani Indoor Arena. Team manager Bernet Ojay put words to Thunder’s mindset before tip-off, a declaration that felt less like bravado and more like a group leaning into its moment. The players matched the promise with poise, and the ticket was secured before the fourth quarter settled.
“We are going for the kill. We hope to qualify for the 2026 Basketball Africa League. We are positive of a win,” said Thunder team manager Bernet Ojay.
Why this qualification matters
Thunder have been here before. In the 2024 to 2025 campaign they became the first Kenyan team to reach the Basketball Africa League after winning the East Division Elite 16. Their debut in the Nile Conference in Kigali was a crash course, only one win in six, a single victory over South Africa’s MBB. The lessons stuck, the standards rose.
Coach Ibs has never hidden it. The mantra has been unfinished business, a redo to prepare better for this level and push deeper into the playoffs that gather the top eight teams across three conferences. That is why the practices ran long, why the rotations tightened, and why the group looked so composed on the biggest local night of their year.
“When we started this Elite 16 journey, we had the message of unfinished business in BAL since we didn’t play so well last year and it was our mission to get back and represent ourselves better,” Ibs said after the semifinal. “Tonight was really electric and it showed what Kenyan basketball means to the sporting community here.”
Reaching the East Division final means automatic qualification. Thunder and Johannesburg now join a strong 2026 field that already includes Club Africain from Tunisia, Petro de Luanda from Angola, Al Ahly from Egypt, ASC Ville de Dakar from Senegal, FUS Rabat from Morocco, Jeunesse Club d’Abidjan from Côte d’Ivoire, APR from Rwanda as hosts, and reigning champions Al Ahly Tripoli from Libya. The 2026 BAL champions will also earn a coveted berth to the 2026 FIBA Intercontinental Cup, a prize that adds even more shine to the path ahead.
What comes next at Kasarani
The East Division final brings Nairobi City Thunder back to center stage against Johannesburg Giants on Sunday, 23 November, tip-off at 7 pm. Earlier at 4:30 pm, Dar City face Ferroviario da Beira for bronze. For the Giants, the road to the final ran through a nerve-shredding 71-69 semifinal win over Dar City, where they recovered from a 13-21 first quarter to edge it late behind Nino Dim with 21, Dhieu Abwok Deing with 16, and Joshua Ozabor with 14.
Even with the BAL ticket secured, the final matters. It is a chance to measure Thunder’s growing identity against a heavyweight they already beat by three in the group, a chance to confirm that the killer instinct seen against Beira travels into pressure time against a team stacked with clutch shot makers. It is a chance to send Nairobi into the off-season with a banner night.
The sound and soul of a Nairobi run
This is as much a story about a team as it is about a city. The Elite 16 in Nairobi has felt like a cultural homecoming, a blend of hoops, music, and style that wrapped around the court. On a bustling weeknight when Thunder played Namuwongo Blazers, the arena swelled with jerseys and flags, with Isukuti dancers pounding out rhythms from the stands, with energy that made the game feel like a block party with a scoreboard.
That atmosphere has fed the players. Ongwae, the steady captain, delivered big shots and leadership when runs needed stopping, his presence settling the group in key moments. Odero took the spotlight against Beira and Johannesburg, his scoring runs timed to break the opponent’s will. The spine around them, from Thomas to Adera, from Chase Adams to Ater Majok, has given Thunder a stronger identity on both ends, a balance that travels.
Key figures who tilted the floor
Albert Odero has been the headline maker. He followed his 21 against the Giants with 32 against Beira, scoring in bursts that flipped the scoreboard and the momentum. His first quarter against Beira, highlighted by a fast-break score and two early threes, set the tone for a night where every Thunder possession appeared purposeful.
Tylor Ongwae added the poise and playmaking that makes this team feel whole. His 18 points and six assists against Johannesburg were perfectly timed, a reminder that shot creation matters most when a game tightens. He has worn the pressure lightly, a captain’s demeanor that has spread through the rotation.
Lance Robert Thomas and Eugene Adera have been the connective tissue. Thomas has supplied scoring and spacing, the kind of production that bends defenses and frees drivers. Adera’s rise as a rebounder in recent games, a point of emphasis mentioned by the staff during the week, has given Thunder a reliable outlet that starts transition and protects leads.
Ater Majok has anchored the back line with his two-way presence, changing shots and cleaning up possessions, the kind of influence that rarely shows up in a box score but always shows up on film. And Chase Adams has organized, pushed pace when the chances were there, and settled the half-court when control mattered most. It is a profile that looks increasingly built for the grind of BAL play.
Three takeaways from Thunder’s run
- defending with hunger, Thunder dominated the paint and still controlled second-chance points,
- star power with balance, Albert Odero led the scoring while team-mates filled every gap,
- belief backed by preparation, Bradley Ibs’ message of unfinished business turned into a ticket punched.
