Childe Dundao was cheered on with MVP chants by a section of fans inside SunBet Arena as Petro de Luanda beat FUS Rabat 89-86 on Thursday.
Dundao was 9-for-17 from the floor, leading the Angolan champions with a game-high of 25 points, and Aboubakar Gakou added 21 points to help Petro secure their second straight win in the Kalahari Conference.
Despite their first loss of the season, FUS Rabat remain top of the Conference thanks to a better point-differential over Petro de Luanda, a team they outscored 82-73 in the opener of the conference.
The Rabat-based team fought a 22-point deficit (79-57) in the third quarter to silence Petro de Luanda later in the fourth quarter.
Jonathan Jordan, who scored a team-high of 18 points in the second half, was the main reason Petro de Luanda panicked when they looked in control of the game.
Petro de Luanda stepped on the floor knowing that beating FUS Rabat was their only option to boost the team’s morale in the competition, and their zone defense paid off.
“They played the zone for about 35 minutes, which is very unusual for a good team like this, but it happens. Next time that we see them again, we’ll be more ready for this,” said FUS Rabat point guard Kendrick Brown who finished with 12 points and 4 assists.
Just like Jordan, Aliou Diarra finished the first half without a single point, but when he had the opportunity the Malian threw down three thunderous dunks to finish with 8 points and 7 rebounds.
Unlike their first match-up, Petro only trailed for 57 seconds, and its bench was more productive, contributing 34 points.
Dundao was so impactful for Petro de Luanda that by the end of the fourth quarter he counted 22 points. He eventually added 3 more points.
FUS Rabat guard Soufiane Benmhine said Dundao was “lucky that I didn’t guard him for the whole game. I was fighting for my team and for myself. I am dog on the court.”
In fact Benmhine shut down Dundao when Petro needed him most in the fourth.
Benmhine went on to say that Ramadan influenced the team’s slow start to the game.
“It was a tough game for us, especially because we are observing Ramadan – we broke the fasting 15 minutes before the game –, which affected us to get into the game.”
Petro de Luanda forward Aboubakar Gakou who is observing Ramadan said: “I have been observing Ramadan for over seven years as a professional basketball player. I am used to it, and, it never affects my performance negatively; on contrary, I feel great and it boosts my concentration.”
The Kalahari Conference resumes on Saturday with Petro de Luanda taking on Cape Town Tigers.