Latest news with #PatrickGardner
TimesLIVE
15 hours ago
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Petro reach third BAL final, White Jr heroics push debutants Tripoli through
Petro de Luanda beat Al Ittihad 96-74 in Wednesday evening's second semifinal at SunBet Arena in Pretoria to advance to the Basketball Africa League (BAL) final for the third time in five seasons. It was Al Ittihad's first loss of the season after they reached the semifinals with an undefeated record of 8-0, while Petro de Luanda were 4-4 before the semifinals. The Angolan champions will face Al Ahli Tripoli, earlier 84-71 winner in their semi against APR in the 2025 BAL final on Saturday (4pm). Egyptian giants Ittihad got off to a perfect start, making all three of their first field goals, followed by two free throws by Jo Lual Acuil Jnr for an 8-5 lead. However, when Patrick Gardner sank a three-pointer to tie the game at 8-8, and Rigoberto Mendoza scored a layup to give Petro de Luanda a 10-8 lead, Al Ittihad found themselves on the ropes. FINAL BOUND! Here they come 🔜🇦🇴🔥 @castlelitesa Game Summary! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 11, 2025 The Egyptians chased the reigning champions for most of the rest of the game and trailed by up to 25 points at times. Despite Ittihad's defensive adjustments, Petro de Luanda's determination and collective effort proved too difficult to overcome. Al Ittihad's three-point shots were nowhere to be found. They finished 5-for-26, while Petro made 11 of their 27 three-point attempts. Petro stepped onto the floor with a new starting line-up for the third consecutive post-season game. Their bench outscored Ittihad's 60-35. Majok Deng finished with a team-high 17 points for Ittihad. Reigning BAL Most Valuable Player Jo Lual Acuil Jnr added 16 points for the Egyptian outfit, who shot 15-for-24 from the free throw line. Petro guard Kendrick Ray shot 6-for-8 from deep, leading all players with 21 points. Aboubacar Gakou added 17 points off the bench and Patrick Gardner had a huge performance, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. It was our lucky day: we got to watch Kendrick Ray hoop 🤩 @visitrwanda_now Player of the Game! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 11, 2025 'Our game against APR [which we lost 75-57] motivated us to be ready for the quarterfinals,' Gardner said. 'The biggest word we use as a team is 'sacrifice', doing whatever is needed to win.' 'Everyone on this team has been doing their job well. It's great to come out with two wins.' Ittihad will finish their 2025 BAL campaign against APR in Friday's third-place game (7pm). Fabian White Jnr joined Al Ahli Tripoli just days before the BAL playoffs. He became the Libyan champions' hero in a hard-fought semifinal against Rwanda's APR. The 26-year-old power forward played the entire 40 minutes, doing everything for Al Ahli Tripoli. Another masterclass for Fabian White Jr. 👏 @visitrwanda_now Player of the Game! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 11, 2025 He shot 9-for-14 from the floor, including 3-for-6 from deep, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out two assists, his heroics vital for the BAL debutants to reach the 2025 final, finishing with a game-high 23 points. White Jnr was joined by Caleb Agada, who came off the bench to score 17 points. Mohamed Sadi and Jaylen Adams notched 13 points each. 'Fabian joined us late but he played as if he had been part of the team and our game plan for years. He is not only a great player but also an even better person. I love him,' said Al Ahli captain Mohamed Sadi. Sadi is in his second BAL season, having played for AS Douanes in the inaugural campaign. 'Since day one, I have been saying we are going to make history for Libya,' he said. Last season, the Libyan team Al Ahli Ly finished second. Their Tripoli namesakes will look to go one better. 'Al Ahli Ly Benghazi was in a similar situation last season. This shows how much basketball has improved in Libya,' Sadi said.
The Herald
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald
Petro de Luanda reach BAL semis for fifth time in a row, APR also through
Thanks to Patrick Gardner's lethal plays, Petro de Luanda reached the semifinals of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) for the fifth consecutive season with their 95-84 win against US Monastir at SunBet Arena in Pretoria on Monday night. No other team in the league's history has reached such a milestone. The Angolan champions needed to bounce back from their loss in the seeding game to APR two days earlier. Beating Monastir, the Tunisian side they had lost to three times in their previous four encounters, was essential. Monastir and Petro traded blows early in the game. However, when the reigning champions used a 12-0 scoring run to close the opening quarter with a 12-point lead (28-16), there was little the 2022 BAL champions could do to retake the lead. Gardner shot 5-for-9 from the floor, including 3-for-5 from deep, to finish with 14 points. His teammate Kendrick Ray led all players in scoring with 20 points.
TimesLIVE
3 days ago
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Petro de Luanda reach BAL semis for fifth time in a row, APR also through
Thanks to Patrick Gardner's lethal plays, Petro de Luanda reached the semifinals of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) for the fifth consecutive season with their 95-84 win against US Monastir at SunBet Arena in Pretoria on Monday night. No other team in the league's history has reached such a milestone. The Angolan champions needed to bounce back from their loss in the seeding game to APR two days earlier. Beating Monastir, the Tunisian side they had lost to three times in their previous four encounters, was essential. Monastir and Petro traded blows early in the game. However, when the reigning champions used a 12-0 scoring run to close the opening quarter with a 12-point lead (28-16), there was little the 2022 BAL champions could do to retake the lead. Gardner shot 5-for-9 from the floor, including 3-for-5 from deep, to finish with 14 points. His teammate Kendrick Ray led all players in scoring with 20 points. Babacar Sané takes flight ✈️ @FlyRwandAir Dunk of the Game! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 9, 2025 Yanick Moreira was dominant in the paint, finishing with 15 points and five rebounds, despite picking up three early fouls. This forced Petro coach Sergio Moreno to protect Moreira from an early exclusion from the game. Gardner's two consecutive three-pointers in the first quarter paved the way for Petro's control of the game. And, limiting the Tunisian giants' actions on both ends of the floor by forcing Acuil Deng, Babacar Sane and Osiris Eldridge into foul trouble early on was key for Petro. Sane caused Petro de Luanda some discomfort on offence and finished with 14 points before fouling out early in the fourth quarter. Monastir were eliminated in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive season, while Petro, who they defeated in the 2022 BAL Final, remain in contention. A classy performance by Kendrick Ray ✨ @visitrwanda_now Player of the Game! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 9, 2025 Patrick Hardy Jnr and Firas Lahyani combined for 32 points for US Monastir, but Petro's aggressiveness and sense of urgency on both ends of the floor were tough to deal with. Childe Dundao, who played only five minutes off the bench in Petro's 75-57 loss to APR, was one of three new starters, with Samkelo Cele and Patrick Gardner. Dundao shot 3-for-6, including 2-for-4 from behind the arc, and finished with 10 points and six assists. He told 'This Petro de Luanda team is a group of warriors and everyone knows our goal for this BAL season. We can't afford to get comfortable. We will keep fighting no matter the circumstances. 'We can't be judged solely on our loss in the seeding game. To bounce back, we needed to lock in defensively, which is what we did to beat Monastir.' Petro face Egyptian side Al Ittihad Alexandria in the later of the two semifinals on Wednesday (7pm). Just perfect 😮💨 Rivers Hoopers 🇳🇬 vs APR 🇷🇼 Mini-Movie! #BAL5 — Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) June 9, 2025 Dundao shared his thoughts on the Egyptian champions, saying: 'Al Ittihad is a good team, but we have a goal to accomplish. We're taking it one game at a time.' For the second time in the history of the BAL, a Rwandan team has reached the semifinals, APR beating Rivers Hoopers 104—73 in Monday's earlier quarterfinal. Patriots Basketball Club was the first Rwandan team to reach the last four in the inaugural BAL season in 2021. The Rwandan champions displayed complete dominance from start to finish and never trailed, registering the largest winning margin in the 2025 playoffs. They became the second team to cross the 100-point mark after Al Ahli Tripoli outscored Kriol Star 107- 81. APR played aggressively on defence and efficiently on offence, taking a 25-point lead (57-32) at half time. The Rwandan side meet Al Ahli Tripoli in Wednesday's earlier semifinal (4pm).
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Annature partners with Collins SBA to provide integrated eSigning solution
BRISBANE, Australia, Feb. 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Australian eSigning innovator Annature today announced a significant partnership with Hobart-based accounting, financial planning and business coaching firm Collins SBA. This partnership sees Annature's industry-leading eSigning and identity verification solutions integrated into the tech stack for Collins SBA's custom Salesforce functionality. Having dramatically improved their own internal procedures, Collins SBA is now offering this capability to other partner firms as an innovative Shared Services Centre. By centralising core functions like technology, HR, compliance, financial management, and marketing, the Shared Services Centre provides partner firms with the ready-built tools and capabilities to scale effectively and maximise high-value time. As one of 12 custom integrations chosen for the Salesforce implementation, Collins SBA cited Annature's clearly designed and documented API, flexible integration capability and affordable pricing structure. Annature is also fully integrated with SharePoint within the Shared Services Centre, resulting in a superior experience for the firm's internal team, clients and other partners who adopt the technology. In transitioning from their previous provider Docusign to Annature, Collins SBA has saved 78% per annum in eSigning costs, while sending 250 envelopes for internal and external eSigning each month. Annature's on-shore support team was readily available to migrate the firm quickly and efficiently over from Docusign before its contract expired. 'In transitioning to Annature, we've won on every front in terms of client and team member experience, while also benefiting from their flexibility and fair pricing,' said Collins SBA Head of Technology Patrick Gardner. 'Annature made the migration seamless, and we've found we're using eSigning more, as it is so much easier and simpler than the Docusign experience. We believe Annature has the best and most adaptable solutions for our needs, and we're very proud to partner with such a trusted Australian success story.' Gardner also highlighted Annature's key role in the Shared Services Centre, including its trusted status with other external product providers and platforms, such as Netwealth, and the value of its identity verification technology for accounting firms to verify customers. 'As an integrated accounting and financial planning firm, we only need to do the identity verification once, which reduces the burden on the client,' explained Gardner. 'What's most impactful is that we now have a 'day one' solution for when a new firm comes on-board the Shared Services Centre, with Annature as a core component.' 'We're thrilled to partner with Collins SBA, as we share a passion for innovation that improves the client experience,' said Annature founder and CEO Corey Cacic. 'We immediately saw the value that Annature's eSigning and identity verification solutions could bring to the Shared Services Centre. We look forward to other firms using what Collins SBA has built to streamline their processes, automate core functions and fuel their growth.' Contact information:Corey Caciccorey@ A photo accompanying this announcement is available at in to access your portfolio
