MOÇÂMEDES (Angola) - Angola was wary of Guinea's threat, but the 2025 AfroBasket host patiently pulled out a win that they later described as essential.
The last time Angola and Guinea faced off was on February 21, 2025, during the qualifiers in Tripoli, Libya were the eleven-time African champions fell short against a Guinea team that was eager to bounce back from a 0–3 record in the first round of the qualifiers.
Fast forward to Game Day 2 of the African Championship on August 14, Guinea challenged Angola once more, but this time Angola prevailed, winning 84–68.
Guinea stepped onto the court looking to maintain their momentum after beating South Sudan on the opening night of this year's AfroBasket tournament.
The teams traded blows for most of the first three quarters until Angola improved their defense and offense to secure the win and improve to 2-0.
Real Madrid power forward Bruno Fernando inspired Angola with his double-double of 14 points and 14 rebounds, and AS Monaco's Alpha Diallo led all players in scoring with 24 points off the bench.
TURNING POINT: Guinea went into halftime with a narrow 34-33 lead, but Angola took a decisive 60-53 lead by the end of the third quarter. They never trailed again, thanks mainly to their four three-pointers in the third quarter.
HERO: Local fans packed the Welwitschia Mirabilis Arena in Moçâmedes, making their presence felt from start to finish. Even when Angola trailed by eight points in the second quarter, the fans remained loyal to their heroes.
The fans cheered for every positive move the Angolan players made. Even when the players turned the ball over or missed free throws, the tireless fans applauded them to encourage them.
In the end, the players, coaching staff, and the 3,100 fans who packed the arena came together to celebrate the hard-fought win.
STATS DON'T LIE: With a deeper rotation, Angola's bench outscored their counterparts 43-24.
They covered their modest three-point shooting night with a dominant display in the paint, outscoring Guinea 44-16.
However, the key to Angola's success was limiting Guinea's star player, Alpha Diallo, to just six points in the final quarter.
BOTTOM LINE: To secure the top spot in Group C, Angola needs to play much better than they did in the opening three quarters, when Guinea dominated.
Angola won the game thanks to an aggressive, physical defense that neutralized some of Guinea's main strengths and forced them to turn the ball over eight times in the final quarter.
Guinea finished with 21 bad passes, nine more than Angola.
The 16-point margin of victory doesn't tell the full story. Guinea conceded defeat later in the fourth quarter after Angola outscored them 15-5 in the final five minutes.
Guinea came up short, but they made it clear that they are in Angola to make some noise, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them advance beyond the quarterfinals.
WHAT THEY SAID: "We competed the whole game, including the fourth quarter. A basketball game is about taking a lead, and, at some point, you either going to lose it or .... I personally thought that in the fourth quarter we had less calls, I understand the home advantage, nothing against the Angola team, they are a really good team, but I feel the officials were calling more calls for them. Coach said we were nervous. I wasn't nervous; I have been to big games - and this is one of them - in the NBA and the G-League. We are not worried about what happened today. We'll regroup and try to win our next game. We are hopeful to see this team [Angola] again." Guinea forward Mamadi Diakite.
"That's a great for us. We worked hard for it, they are a well-coached team, credit to them. They made great decisions out there, making things tough for us all throughout, but we were able to make some adjustments at halftime, limiting some of their players from being able to get to the spot they were getting in the first half. Picking up our defense and being able to force them to 21 turnovers, it was a good point of emphasis for us." Angola power forward Bruno Fernando.
"Beating Guinea was our main goal coming into this game. Had they won the game they would have qualified for the quarterfinals." - Angola Coach Pepe Claros.
FIBA