YAOUNDE (Cameroon) - Whenever five-time FIBA AfroBasket victors Senegal take to the court, their prime ambition is to make their presence felt via a win.

Senegal with a record 29 participations at the continent's pinnacle nations basketball tournament have appeared in all AfroBasket editions except its maiden bonanza in 1962 and the West Africans hope to continue with tradition via an appearance at this year's African Championship in, Kigali, Rwanda in August.

The Senegalese have been striking the right notes throughout the Qualifiers with an impressive 3-0 unbeaten streak.

"THE MAIN GOAL IS TO STAY UNBEATEN THROUGHOUT THE QUALIFIERS AND GET BETTER AS A TEAM."
- Youssoupha Ndoye

 Having cruised past Angola, Mozambique, and Kenya during Group B's First Round of the Qualifiers, the five-time African champions are poised on staying undefeated during the final window of qualifiers in Yaounde, Cameroon from February 19-21.

"The main goal is to stay unbeaten throughout the qualifiers and get better as a team," Senegal's captain Youssoupha Ndoye told FIBA.basketball.

"We want to win all the 3 games we have, qualify for the Afrobasket, and ensure that we're ready for the tournament."

"We want to play some great basketball and get better as a team. If we can execute properly, the results will come in," the 2.11m (6ft 11in) said.

Since his first experience at the AfroBasket in 2017 where he churned in 8.4 points and 4.6 rebounds to inspire Senegal to a Third-Place finish, Ndoye has become a kingpin in the side, contributing 11.8 points and 6.2 rebounds as his side failed to go past the first hurdle at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019.

Having garnered experience competing in top continental and global competitions, Ndoye now aged 29 has turned his mind towards motivating the younger cast of players present in the team.

He believes that they can only maintain their rhythm if the team's frailties are tackled properly.

"We have to try to reduce our mistakes both offensively and defensively. Offensively we have to be more daring and defensively we have to limit our opponents to lesser opportunities," hen warned.

During the last window, Senegal ended the games trailing in the fourth quarter. Against Mozambique, despite a 60-53 win, the West Africans were outscore 21-11 in the last quarter while against Angola they were outmuscled 22-18 in the final stages of the game.

This drop in intensity at the end of fixtures has been of concern to Ndoye but he is grateful the squad has been revamped with a significant cast of younger players worming their way into the side.

The possibility of having youthful legs on the court will aid in containing Angola and Mozambique who've looked more threatening playing fast breaks against Senegal.

 
Having joined Spanish top-tier side Real Betis, Ndoye has posted decent figures averaging 10.1 points but it is the leadership role that he's had to assume that he seemingly relishes.

Having the ability to guide the younger generation is the fuel that ignites the big man's drive to more wins.

"As the player and the captain of the team, I have to lead by example," Ndoye mentioned.

"My attitude and the way I play should serve as a sort of motivation to the team as to how we set up. We have to be ready for the games as well as every obstacle that we face.

"We have to be resilient because that's what the coach and Senegalese expect from us and we don't want to let them down," the Dakar-native emphasized.

Angola, Mozambique, and Kenya are heading to Cameroon hoping to pull up trees and either top the group or punch their ticket for the Rwanda showdown later this year.

The Senegalese are quite aware of their ambitions and despite being regulars at the African basketball showpiece, they're not underestimating the impact that another appearance in the basketball jamboree could have on the practice of the sport back at home.

 
The last time Senegal laid their hands on the AfroBasket trophy was 24 years ago on home court and subsequent attempts at getting that done have proven futile. But Ndoye now hopes this is something they'll be able to achieve.

"The impact of another AfroBasket participation will be great for us.

"We want to be the last team standing in Rwanda and we just want to win the games.

"That's what we've been working on as a team and hopefully we're able to achieve that this time around," he concluded.

FIBA