WINDHOEK (Namibia) - The Southern African nations of Angola and South Africa secured their spots in the U16 AfroBasket tournament in Rwanda from September 2-14.
Angola, appearing in their seventh U16 tournament, dominated the recently concluded Zone 6 age group qualifiers of the continental tournament in Windhoek, Namibia.
The Angolans, who finished fourth in Tunisia in 2023, easily won all four games in the round-robin stage, beating Malawi (118-35), Botswana (122-34), South Africa (74-35), and Namibia (95-47).
In the final game, Angola again faced South Africa and won by 20 points (70-50).
Alfredo Micaba led Angola's charge to qualify for the AfroBasket tournament.
Micaba, who plays for the youth team of the giant club Petro de Luanda, had impressive statistics at the tournament: 18.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.
His performance against Botswana (20 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists) and Namibia (23 points, 8 rebounds, and 9 assists) set the tone for Angola, the zonal powerhouse.
South Africa, ranked second, will make its fourth trip to the AfroBasket tournament after last appearing in Mali in 2015.
South Africa finished the round-robin phase with a 3–1 record, and they can take heart from their improved performance against Angola in the final.
In the group stage, the South Africans beat the hosts, Namibia, 118-32; Botswana, 83-43; and Malawi, 76-70.
Alexander Papadimas had standout performances in the group stage, recording a double-double (19 points and 13 rebounds) against Namibia, 12 points and nine rebounds, and another double-double (18 points and 12 rebounds).
Thabo Marotola and Rehaan Allie scored 17 and 13 points, respectively, in the final game against Angola.
FIBA