Chad chasing Cameroon for FIBA AfroBasket 2017 ticket

YAOUNDE (FIBA AfroBasket 2017) – Chad seem to be living a dream having finished the first leg of the AfroBasket 2017 Group D qualifier in second place just behind Cameroon.

 

As the second leg of the regional qualifier gets underway, Cameroon hold wins over Chad (75-62) and Gabon (68-65). Though Chad seem prepared to give hosts Cameroon a run for their money as they enjoy a 1-0 record.

 

Only the winner of the Yaounde qualifier will qualify for the FIBA AfroBasket 2017 in Congo-Brazzaville in August.

 

The Chadians will go up against Gabon on Tuesday in the opening game of the second leg and would be looking forward to repeating their first leg's win (71-42). 

 

In that game, Chad's Michael Koibe was on fire posting 18 points and 12 rebounds while Gabon’s Kobangoye Ikinda came up with 11 points though his effort wasn't enough to save his side from the 29-point shocking defeat.

 

Cameroon’s coach Souleyman Pepouna Munyutu had to dig deep into his technical reserve to halt the rampaging Chadians in the first meeting that ended 75-62. The Cameroonians were lucky against Gabon who knew that they were losing grip of getting a hold on the FIBA AfroBasket 2017 race.

 

 

Thanks to the resilient efforts of Christian Bayang who scored 21 points to lead the floor and Pierre Essome with 15 points for Cameroon, the Gabonese side made a spirited effort to win with Abessolo Toung scoring 21 points, 6 rebounds and Kobangoye Ikinda 11 and 3 rebounds.

The remainder of the fixture will see Gabon take on Cameroon on 29 March while Chad will face Cameroon on 30 March.   

So far teams qualified include Senegal, Mali, Nigeria, FIBA AfroBasket 2017 hosts Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Uganda, Cote d’Ivoire, Morocco, Tunisia and Mozambique.

The last two places for the FIBA AfroBasket 2017 will be attributed via a wild card allocation process.

 

FIBA