BULAWAYO (Zimbabwe) – A double-digit performance by Elves Houana and Pio Matos saw Mozambique claim the only Zone 6 ticket to the FIBA AfroCan after beating Zimbabwe 71-59 on Tuesday in Bulawayo. 

The Lusophones have left very little to no margin to their opponents, whom they had already beaten on the last day of the Group Phase to punch their names in the ticket to Angola.

Houana was the top performer of the game with 18 points and 7 rebounds, while Pio Matos claimed 5 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists to help Mozambique get their ticket to Angola. Ismael Nurmamade also featured on the game’s top scorers list with 13 points.

Pio Matos

The game basically translates in Mozambique taking control and never letting go, thought Zimbabwe did at times send a chill down their spines.

It was clear from the start that Mozambique wanted the ticket more than anything else. But after suffering a loss to the hosts on the inaugural day of the FIBA Africa Zone 6 Qualifiers, they advanced more cautiously through the final game.

They initially secured a 7-point advantage at the end of the first quarter (26-19), though Zimbabwe gave them a good run for their money. But by half-time, Matos and his teammates had nearly doubled their lead, heading into the third quarter with the scoreboard showing 43-28.

It was around this time that Zimbabwe took the game in their hands. Though they claimed the third quarter with some authority (18-13), the hosts could not close the 7-point gap that separated them from the lead.

Finally, the fourth quarter saw both teams battle till the end. A score of 15-13 for Mozambique was all that they needed to make it to their Finals in July.

Zimbabwe can regret not taking any chance as they seemed to have everything on their side. They had a more prolific bench, who produced 15 points while they scored 28 points from inside the paint.

Mozambique capitalized on Zimbabwe’s turnovers to score 20 points, while Vitalis Chikoko, who averaged 15 PPG during the Qualifiers, could not do anything to prevent his side from sinking. He was rather far from his usual form, scoring only 5 points.

Noah Penduka and Tatenda Tswatswa, however, compensated for Chikoko’s bad day with 12 and 13 points respectively. Which were, however, far from enough to help Zimbabwe claim victory and the only ticket at stake.

FIBA