ABIDJAN (Cote d'Ivoire) - Cote d'Ivoire qualified for the 2023 FIBA Women's AfroBasket after beating Guinea 98-48 on Sunday in the second of a two-game series played in Abidjan.

The Ivorians closed the series with a 179-101 win on aggregate.

This year's African Championship will be held in Kigali, Rwanda from July 28 to August 6.

With the win, Cote d'Ivoire are now placed in Group A alongside hosts Rwanda and former African champions Angola.

The Ivorian team relied on a combination of experienced veterans and highly-motivated youngsters to carry their flag high. 

Moving forward, Cote d'Ivoire can count on players like Djefarima Diawara, who finished the two-team Qualifiers with 26 points, 15 rebounds and 4 assists.

And Zeinabou Sieza finished the second game with a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds, who finished an overall contribution of 21 points, 22 rebounds and 5 assists.

Bognini Irene, who returned after a four-year absence due to injury, came up strong, scoring a total of 31 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists.

She remains confident that she will bring her added value to the team in Kigali: "I didn't play for the last four years just to make up the numbers. I'm sure I'll bring something extra to the team", declared the Ivorian before adding: "I have a lot of hope in this Ivorian team and by the grace of God, we'll have a great run."

The Ivorian coach remains serene about their group, even if for him a qualifying tournament with more teams would have been perfect: "We're qualified, which is already a good thing. But I regret the fact that there weren't more teams, as this would have enabled us to prepare better to face the teams in our group," said Zoran Visic.

FIBA