Window 3 in Africa - Gameday 1 Top Performers: Moulare, Kuol, Almeida, Ben Romdhane, Marei

 

ABIDJAN/ALEXANDRIA/KIGALI - The three cities hosting the third window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 African Qualifiers were presented with eye-catching performances on Friday.

In the Rwandan capital of Kigali, home to Groups A and B, Bul Kuol, Ivan Almeida and Makram Ben Romdhane delighted the fans inside the BK Arena with astonishing displays.

In Alexandria, Assem Marei marked his first appearance for Egypt since June 2018 in a remarkable fashion, and, in Abidjan, youngster Assemian Moulare delighted the thousands of fans inside the Palais des Sports Treichville with his exuberant plays. 

In his debut with South Sudan, Kuol was unstoppable. Rwanda defence succeeded at times to force him out of his comfort zone, but when Kuol had a chance, he capitalised from Rwanda's mistakes.

Kuol was 5-for-12 from beyond the arc to finish with 16 points. He contributed 5 rebounds as the newest country in the Africa beat hosts Rwanda 73-63 to become the first team to advance to the Second Round.

Almeida, on the other hand, did a bit of everything to help Cape Verde beat Nigeria 79-70 for the second straight time in the African Qualifiers.

The 2.00m (6ft 7in) guard/forward created his own shooting opportunities, created shots for others, played aggressively on both ends of the floor, and, as a result, Cape Verde improved their chances of advancing to the 12-nation Second Round.

Even when Walter Tavares - Cape Verde's most impactful player - fouled out later in the fourth quarter, Almeida maintained his leadership to help Cape Verde improve to 2-2.

Almeida had a +25 efficiency - the highest of any player in Friday's 8 games - thanks to his 14 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals. 

AfroBasket reigning AfroBasket MVP Ben Romdhane did what was expected from him with his inspiring leadership.

The 33-year-old helped Tunisia improve to 3-1 thanks to a 65-54 triumph over Cameroon. He finished  with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists.

In the North part of Africa, Marei was a delight to watch. Disciplined, combative, and focused - three attributes that disrupted Senegal's attempts to compete.

Marei's +23 efficiency, which mainly resulted from his 10 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 7 steals, played a huge part in Egypt's 76-43 triumph against Senegal. 

Marei scored the first two points of the game from the free-throw, recorded a number of steals early on, just to end up with the man-of-the-match recognition.

FIBA