Kriol Star

Kriol Star
League	CBL BAL
Established	2024
History	Kriol Star (2024–present)
Arena	Gimnodesportivo Vavá Duarte
Capacity	7,000
Location	Praia, Cape Verde
Head coach	Hugo Da Silva Salgado
Ownership	Kriol Star Foundation

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

Although the social organization had been established for around 10 years, ^[2] the basketball team Kriol Star was established in 2024 by the two professional players and brothers Joel and Ivan Almeida, ^[3] 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. ^{[4] [5]}

Led by head coach Hugo Da Silva Salgado, they were allocated in Group A. ^[6] The first roster was revealed in October 2024, and included national team players Ali Lahrichi, Joel Almeida, Dieudonné Ndizeye and Oumar Barry, among others. ^[7] Kriol Star lost its both games against hosts Al Ahli Tripoli and Stade Malien and was eliminated in the first round. ^[8] In November, however, FIBA announced that the team received a wild card for the East Division's Elite 16 round. ^[9] On December 2, they defeated the favored Urunani from Burundi in the semifinal to qualify for the 2025 BAL season. ^[10]

Roster

The following was Kriol Star's roster in the 2025 BAL qualification:Note: Flags indicate national team, as has been defined under FIBA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIBA nationality.

No. Pos. Nat. Player 0 G   MAR Ali Lahrichi 2 F   CPV Helton Lopes Correia 8 SG   CPV Joel Almeidfa Tavares 9 G/F   CPV Joel Almeida 11 SF   CPV Luis Texeira 12 G   USA Kclejuan Brown 16 C   CPV Keven Gomes 22 G   USA De'Angelo Stewart 23 C   MLI Oumar Barry 34 F   RWA Dieudonné Ndizeye

Performance in the Road to BAL

Competition	Season	Coach	Won	Lost	Win %	Final stage	Top scorer
Road to BAL	2025	Hugo Da Silva Salgado	0	2	.000	Eliminated in the first round	Dieudonné Ndizeye (12.5)
Totals			0	2	.000	—

References

1. "Meet the team: Kriol Star". www.fiba.basketball. 27 November 2024. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
2. "Kriol Star (CAPE VERDE)". The BAL. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
3. Lehohla, Manyehlisa (15 October 2024). "Almeida waxes lyrical about his music and success on the court". The Big Tip Off. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
4. "Kriol Star Stats, Games, Results, Rosters, Photos & Videos - FIBA Africa Champions Clubs ROAD TO B.A.L 2025 | FIBA.basketball". www.fiba.basketball. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
5. "Things to know about the Road to BAL 2025 - West Division". www.fiba.basketball. 10 October 2024. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
6. "Kriol Star Stats, Games, Results, Rosters, Photos & Videos - FIBA Africa Champions Clubs ROAD TO B.A.L 2025 | FIBA.basketball". www.fiba.basketball. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
7. @theofficial_cbl (11 October 2024). "The Kriol Star will play in the Road to BAL" – via Instagram.
8. "Party time in Tripoli as four teams advance to the Elite 16". www.fiba.basketball. 13 October 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
9. "Kriol Star receive wild card for East Division Elite 16". www.fiba.basketball. 24 November 2024. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
10. "Short-handed Kriol Star stun star-studded Urunani, qualify for BAL 2025". www.fiba.basketball. 2 December 2024. Retrieved 2 December 2024.