ABIDJAN (Cote d'Ivoire) - Women's AfroBasket All-star Yacine Diop got action going as the 2025 showpiece tipped off at the 3,500 capacity Palais des Sports Treichville as Senegal took on Guinea for a 92-48 victory.
Despite being on opposite ends of the power rankings, and Senegal having easily won their previous encounters convincingly, the record title holders struggled in the opening quarter.
They, however, recovered for a 44-point victory, getting their campaign for a first title since 2015 off to a good start.
Turning Point: It was no surprise that the 11-time champions were struggling in the opening quarter as they kept Guinea in the game, handing them 13 shots on the charity stripe, the latter converting 11. Nana John Soumah and Batouly Camara contributed the other four as the first and last baskets of the quarter for Guinea for a 23-15 outcome.
Senegal played a better second quarter, going on a 14-3 run in the second part of the stanza to head to the halftime break with a 19-point cushion (47-28). Even as Guinea went for a 14-13 lead in the third quarter, it was too little too late to make any difference as a 32-6 final quarter show sealed their fate.
Game Hero: Ndioma Kane, on debut, brought her experience to the court for 20 points, seven rebounds, 5 blocks, 4 steals and three assists to lead her side to victory. Stats Don't Lie: Guinea were dominated on all fronts but free throws. Senegal dominated the paint 62-18, punished Guinea's 29 turnovers for 31 points, a similar number to their contribution off fast breaks.
Both sides had a slow day from behind the arc, Guinea converting four of 19 while Senegal managed a similar number in 21 attempts. Bottom Line: Senegal had hit 100+ points in three of the four matchups, before today, coming short by a single point in 2011. In their last meeting, in the 2021 Women's AfroBasket opener, Guinea went down 100-31. The 2025 outcome remains the best result for the Guineans in said matchup.
They Said: "We had a lot of mistakes, especially in the opening two quarters as we were trying to settle into the game. We have a relatively young squad and the first game jitters are expected. We, however, have to work on a few things, especially our ball handling to reduce the turnovers before the next game,"- Cierra Dillard.
"They were aggressive, rebounded well and that gave them a lot of second shot attempts.We went out there and hustled and showed our best. However, they are a good transition team, they got away in the final quarter. I think we had a strong showing in the half, we came out and even though it wasn't in double digits but we will continue to showcase that as we look to win the next two matches,"- Batouly Camara.
FIBA