NBL27 Off-Season Weekly Wrap | May 26

The countdown towards NBL27 continued through May, with Jo Lual-Acuil Jr helping Al Ahly Ly secure a place in the Basketball Africa League semi-finals in Kigali, Rwanda.

Al Ahly Ly overturned a first-leg deficit against Tunisia’s Club Africain with a dominant 98-80 victory to advance to the final four of the BAL competition, with Lual-Acuil Jr returning to action to contribute 11 points, three rebounds and a block in the win.

The Wildcats big man and Al Ahly Ly will now face Petro de Luanda in the semi-finals in a rematch of the 2024 BAL Final.

Back home in the NBL1 West, Cam Huefner produced another outstanding weekend for the Perry Lakes Hawks, opening with a dominant double-double of 24 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Wildcats teammate David Okwera and the East Perth Eagles.

Huefner then backed it up less than 24 hours later with a Player of the Game performance, adding 29 points, nine rebounds and four assists against the Cockburn Cougars.

Okwera responded strongly the following day for East Perth, finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists against the Joondalup Wolves after recording 12 points, seven rebounds and two assists in the clash with Perry Lakes.

Kristian Doolittle continued his remarkably consistent run in Puerto Rico with back-to-back double-doubles for Osos de Manati.

The Wildcats star opened the week with 26 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Indios de Mayaguez before adding 17 points, 10 rebounds and five assists against Piratas de Quebradillas.

In New Zealand, Elijah Pepper exploded for one of the biggest individual performances of the off-season so far, pouring in 43 points alongside five rebounds, two assists and a steal for the Wellington Saints against the Southland Sharks.

Pepper followed it up with another impressive display days later, posting 26 points, seven rebounds, four assists and five steals in a win over the Hawke’s Bay Hawks.

In Spain, David Duke Jr delivered one of his strongest performances in recent weeks, finishing with 21 points and four rebounds in Basquet Manresa’s road win over Dreamland Gran Canaria.