Abwok Deing’s undeniable hand in sending Pazi to Elite 16
While the Tanzanian fans will forever be grateful to national star Baraka Athumani who scored the basket that assured Pazi a place in the next round, Dhieu Abwok Deing’s contribution could not be ignored.
DAR ES SALAAM (Tanzania) - On their first time of asking, Tanzania's Pazi BBC, on Saturday 21 October, qualified for the Road to BAL East Division Elite 16 set for November 14 to 19 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Henry Mwinuka-coached Pazi faced off with a relentless Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) on the final day of the Group C qualifiers hosted in their backyard, Dares Salaam, winning the crunch clash 69-67 to book the sole ticket to the next round.
Four teams, Pazi (3-0), Dynamo (2-1), KPA (1-2) and Elan Coton (0-3) were fighting for the ticket.
While the Tanzanian fans will forever be grateful to national star Baraka Sadick Athumani who scored the basket that assured Pazi a place in the next round, Dhieu Abwok Deing’s contribution could not be ignored.
Dhieu Abwok Deing is seen here celebrating with Pazi supporters
The 22-year-old South Sudan shooting guard, who played for Cape Town Tigers in the 2022 Road to BAL, was an instant hit for the Pazi fans from the first match as the side took on Benin champions Elan Coton.
Playing 31.37 minutes in the opener, he had dropped 24 points in Pazi’s 78-65 victory over the Gilles Kouamo-coached side, a win that set things in motion for the Tanzanian side.
Against Burundi’s Dynamo, the youngster was switched on bagging a double-double with 16points and 14 rebounds, combining well with Louis Rucklin who played for 17points in almost 40 minutes as the side stunned the Dynamo to a 71-62 win.
Dhieu Abwok Deing
On the final day of action, Pazi needed a win to lock out Dynamo and KPA who still had a chance to snatch the sole ticket to Johannesburg.
Playing the Kenyan champions in an edge-of-the-seat clash,1,92m (6ft 4in) guard’, who played the entire match as did Athumani and Landry Ndikumana, gave another top-of-the-charts performance, scoring 24 points as Athumani added 21 for the 69-67 win.
For Dynamo, Nigerian teenage sensation Israel Otobo and King Revolution led the charge offensively while KPA had Tyrone Maliek Jordan and Luqman Leon Lundy. Yves-Louis Ngaransou called the shots for Elan Coton on both sides of the court.
While all praise may go to the scoring monsters of Group C who lit up the IST Gymnasium with their treys, dunks and jumpers, the fight for the slot came down to defense.
Hasheem Thabeet
Former NBA player Hasheem Thabeet who managed his first double-double of the competition on the final day against KPA scoring 12 points and pulling down 15 boards also added seven blocks to his tally, a number that pushed his side to victory.
Pazi out-rebounded KPA 38 for 28 with the former's 32 rebounds being on the defensive side against KPA's 18.
As they head to the Elite 16, coach Mwinuka admits that his side need to reinforce for depth having lost two key players, Rucklin and Antony Ulrich, to injuries in the Group C clashes.
The Tanzanian side has landed Cape Town Tigers of South Africa, NBA Academy Africa and a wild card team yet to be determined.
FIBA