That gave the North Africans a 3-1 aggregate win and sets up a mouth-watering regional derby with Raja Casablanca of Morocco, who rode their luck to defeat Kaizer Chiefs. TP Mazembe of DR Congo capitalised on home advantage to seal a 3-2 aggregate win over PSL champions Mamelodi Sundowns in Lubumbashi on Sunday.
Egyptian giants Al-Ahly eased into the second round as they claimed a 2-0 home success over Rwandan side APR to win 4-0 on aggregate and set up a meeting with Moroccan side Moghreb Tétouan in the next stage. The Moroccans advanced 5-2 on aggregate, despite losing their second leg 2-1 at Nigerian side Kano Pillars.
Perennial challengers Esperance of Tunisia advanced with a comfortable 4-1 aggregate success over Cosmos de Bafia of Cameroon and now tackle another Sudanese side in Al-Merrikh for a place in the pool stages.
The winners of the second round ties advance to the group stages of the competition, while the losers drop into the CAF Confederation Cup competition.
Second round fixtures:
USM Alger (Algeria) vs AS Kaloum (Guinea)
SM Sanga Balende (DR Congo) vs Al-Hilal (Sudan)
Al-Merrikh (Sudan) vs Espérance (Tunisia)
MC El Eulma (Algeria) vs CS Sfaxien (Tunisia)
AC Léopards (Congo) vs Smouha (Egypt)
Moghreb Tétouan (Morocco) vs Al-Ahly (Egypt)
Raja Casablanca (Morocco) vs ES Sétif (Algeria)
Stade Malien (Mali) vs TP Mazembe (DR Congo)