Kriol Star Explained

Kriol Star is a Cape Verdean professional basketball team based in Praia. They compete in the Capeverdean Basketball League (CBL) and the Basketball Africa League (BAL), as the first Cape Verdean team in league history, having advanced through the qualifiers.

The home games of the team are usually played at the 7,000-seater arena Gimnodesportivo Vavá Duarte.^[1]

History

Established in 2024 by the two professional players and brothers Joel and Ivan Almeida,^[2] through the holding Kriol Star Foundation, they played in the Road to BAL 2025, becoming the first club from Cape Verde to play in FIBA's continental qualifying tournaments.^{[3] [4]}

Led by head coach Hugo Da Silva Salgado, they were allocated in Group A.^[5] The first roster was revealed in October 2024, and included national team players Ali Lahrichi, Joel Almeida, Dieudonné Ndizeye and Oumar Barry, among others.^[6] Kriol Star lost its both games against hosts Al Ahli Tripoli and Stade Malien and was eliminated in the first round.^[7] In November, however, FIBA announced that the team received a wild card for the East Division's Elite 16 round.^[8] On December 2, they defeated the favored Urunani from Burundi in the semifinal to qualify for the 2025 BAL season.^[9]

Roster

The following was Kriol Star's roster in the 2025 BAL qualification:

References

1. Web site: 2024-11-27 . Meet the team: Kriol Star . 2024-11-30 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
2. Web site: Lehohla . Manyehlisa . 2024-10-15 . Almeida waxes lyrical about his music and success on the court . 2024-10-21 . The Big Tip Off . en-US.
3. Web site: 2024-10-11 . Kriol Star Stats, Games, Results, Rosters, Photos & Videos - FIBA Africa Champions Clubs ROAD TO B.A.L 2025 FIBA.basketball . 2024-10-12 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
4. Web site: 2024-10-10 . Things to know about the Road to BAL 2025 - West Division . 2024-10-12 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
5. Web site: 2024-10-11 . Kriol Star Stats, Games, Results, Rosters, Photos & Videos - FIBA Africa Champions Clubs ROAD TO B.A.L 2025 FIBA.basketball . 2024-10-12 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
6. DA_NHEgurxa . theofficial_cbl . The Kriol Star will play in the Road to BAL . 2024-10-11.
7. Web site: 2024-10-13 . Party time in Tripoli as four teams advance to the Elite 16 . 2024-10-14 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
8. Web site: 2024-11-24 . Kriol Star receive wild card for East Division Elite 16 . 2024-12-02 . www.fiba.basketball . en.
9. Web site: 2024-12-02 . Short-handed Kriol Star stun star-studded Urunani, qualify for BAL 2025 . 2024-12-02 . www.fiba.basketball . en.