ABIDJAN (Côte d’Ivoire) - Group C of the 2025 AfroBasket will put the hosts, ranked third on the continent, to the test when they welcome the top-ranked team from South Sudan, as well as Guinea and Libya, who are looking to cause an upset in Angola.
From August 12 to 24, the continent's best will gather in Angola, and the Group C teams will draw motivation from different places, but they will have one target in mind: to be counted among the best.
FIBA.basketball delves into the archives of recent African basketball tournaments to bring you a breakdown of the games these teams have played against each other.
Where do Group C teams rank?
South Sudan is the highest-ranked team in Africa, coming in at 23rd in the world. They headline Group C alongside Angola, who will be tough opponents as hosts. The Southern Africans are the third highest-ranked team in Africa.
Angola appears ten places below South Sudan (33rd in the world), whose Bright Stars have taken basketball by storm in just five years.
Guinea, who dropped two places in the latest rankings are one place outside the top ten in Africa (75th globally) while Libya are 16th (94th globally).
Head-to-head results between Group C teams over the past decade:
Tournament | Year | Game | Score | City | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
World Cup African Qualifiers | 2023 | Guinea vs Angola | 59-75 (Group C - First Round) | Benguela, Angola | 27-11-2021 |
World Cup African Qualifiers | 2023 | Guinea vs Angola | 65-85 (Group C - Second Round) | Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire | 02-07-2022 |
World Cup | 2023 | Angola vs South Sudan | 78-101 (Group M) - Classification 17th -32nd | Quezon City, Philippines | 02-09-2023 |
AfroBasket Qualifiers | 2025 | Angola vs Guinea | 76-70 (Group E - First Round) | Monastir, Tunisia | 23-02-2024 |
AfroBasket Qualifiers | 2025 | Angola vs Guinea | 65-66 (Group E - Second Round) | Tripoli, Libya | 21-02-2025 |
Key Players
Angola With 11 titles, they hold the record for most wins in AfroBasket. As they host this year's African Championship, they will do everything in their power to protect their home court.
Based on their past performances, Angola has risen to the occasion every time they have hosted the AfroBasket, winning in 1989, 1999, and 2007. They head into the competition after finishing second in Group E of the AfroBasket qualifiers, behind the defending champions, Tunisia.
The former champions, who last won the trophy in 2013 before losing to Nigeria in 2015, are likely to rely on point guard Childe Dundao, who averaged 18.5 points and 7.5 assists during the qualifiers.
Also expected to propel the team are Jilson Bango, who currently plays for Turkish giants Fenerbahçe, and Aboubacar Gakou, who led the team defensively and led the rebounding in the qualifiers with 7.7 per game.
South Sudan
Four years ago, the Luol Deng–led team had to wait until the last minute to secure their spot in the AfroBasket. However, in February 2025, they secured their spot in Angola with two games to spare.
As they prepare for their second appearance at the continental showcase, the seventh-place finishers from 2021 bring experience from their first World Cup and Olympic appearances, which have propelled them to the top of Africa.
Reigning Basketball Africa League (BAL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) Jo Lual Acuil Jr. led South Sudan in their qualification journey and is expected to play a crucial role for the East Africans.
Three-point specialist Peter Jok, team mainstay Wenyen Gabriel, Junior Madut, and former BAL MVP Nuno Omot are adding depth to the team.
With each tournament, South Sudan unveils more of its talent, with additional players debuting for the team. It remains to be seen what arsenal they will bring to Angola.
Guinea
Guinea's best result, a fourth-place finish, dates back to 1962, but their eighth-place finish in 2021 was the best in the 21st century. As they make their third consecutive appearance in the continental showcase, Guinea hopes to bring the same energy they displayed in the final qualifying window.
Led by Nedeljko Asceric, the team went into the final window without a win, but managed to defeat Angola and Kenya to qualify, losing to Tunisia, the defending champions, by a point.
Shannon Evans and Ousmane Drame played crucial roles in leading their country to a third consecutive AfroBasket appearance. Evans led the team in scoring, averaging 19 points per game, and Drame was second with 14 points per game.
Tidjan Keita, the second-most efficient player on the squad after Drame, led the team in rebounding during the qualifiers with an average of 8.7 per game, while Ahmed Doumbia led the team in assists with an average of five per game.
This quartet is expected to guide the West Africans in their quest for improvement in 2025.
Libya
The team finished first in Group B, which included Cape Verde, Nigeria, and Uganda, to secure a spot in the tournament, ending a 16-year wait.
Libya last appeared in the tournament in 2009, when most of the current players were still teenagers.
Star player and captain Mohamed Sadi, now 29, was dominant for Libya, averaging 13.7 points, 6.2 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.7 steals per game during the qualifiers.
He made his mark at the competition by becoming the first player in AfroBasket Qualifiers history to record a triple double. He hopes to continue this performance with his teammates as they return to continental competition.
Basem Albebas, the top scorer in the qualifiers with an average of 17.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, and Naseim Badrush, who averaged 14.2 points and led in assists with 8.4 per game, will be key for the North Africans upon their return.
What the players say
"We have four tough teams in this group and being our first time in 16 years t will be different for us. We will fight each game and do all our best to go the furthest,"- Libya skipper Mohamed Sadi.
"It is a tough pool. Being at the AfroBasket is huge for all nations. Angola are hosts, Guinea played a trick pool to qualify and Libya are back after a long time and hungry. It is a good pool but as South Sudan we hope to execute well and get the wins. We have an opportunity to continue to showcase what South Sudan is about and the World Cup and Olympics have shown that we can churn out results. We hope to build on that and fight for the African title," - South Sudan's Garang Diing.
FIBA