Ex-D’Tigress Coach Sam Vincent Gears Up for Challenging BAL Playoffs with South Africa’s MBB

Former D’Tigress head coach, Sam Vincent, is preparing for a challenging campaign as he leads South African side MBB in the upcoming Nile Conference of the Basketball Africa League (BAL), set to take place later this month in Kigali, Rwanda.

The 61-year-old American, who was appointed head coach of MBB on February 4, will guide the team through a tough group stage that includes fixtures against APR (Rwanda), Al Ittihad Tripoli (Libya), and Nairobi City Thunder (Kenya) in the week-long competition.

MBB earned a spot in the BAL through a wildcard invitation, despite not qualifying via the Road to BAL tournament. Nevertheless, the team will be banking on standout players like Pieter Prinsloo and Lebesa Selepe — both former Cape Town Tigers players — to help them compete at a high level.

Vincent brings a wealth of experience to the South African franchise. A former NBA champion with the Boston Celtics, he previously coached Nigeria’s D’Tigress to two FIBA Women’s Afrobasket titles (2003 and 2017) and led them to the 2004 Athens Olympics, where they made history by defeating Korea 68–64 — the first Olympic win by an African women’s basketball team. He also guided Nigeria’s men’s team, D’Tigers, to the second round of the 2006 FIBA World Championship.

While MBB face an uphill task, the fact that two of their group opponents are also debutants could level the playing field. With South Africa set to host the BAL Finals in June, there’s added motivation for Vincent’s side to make a strong impression in Kigali.