Ferroviario de Maputo book spot to FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women 2017

GABORONE (FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women 2017) - Mozambican giants Ferroviario de Maputo have booked the first Zone 6 ticket to the FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women (ACCW) 2017 scheduled to be held from November 10-19 in Angola. 

In a game that showcased rivalry at its best, Ferroviario de Maputo stunned the reigning ACCW champions InterClue 78-73 in a very tightly contested game that went to the wire. 

InterClube took an early slim lead 20-19 and were in charge at the half time break 39-35 with point guard Italee Lucas leading the scoring charts with 16 points. 

A 59-55 lead for InterClube at the end of the third quarter did not stop Ferroviario de Maputo from continuing to seek for victory. 

A spirited fight in the last quarter saw them maintain pressure on the pre-tournament favorites. 

Shooting guard Ana Suzana Jaime dropped a three-pointer to tie the game at 73 up with a minute to play and two back-to-back turnovers by InterClube saw Inaki Garcia’s side capitalize to pick a very important victory. 

Speaking to FIBA.basketball, Garcia said, "this is the most difficult game in African basketball because they are the champions of Africa for the last ACCW edition but we kept them close and finally won. It is a great moment for us."

Jaime scored a game-high 19 points while captain Ingvild Mucauro added 12 points to guide Ferroviario de Maputo to a famous victory. 

In the other games, Southern Mavericks from Zimbabwe defeated Police Academy of Botswana 74-61 while Primeiro de Agosto made light work of Botswana Defense Force 130-15 to keep their chances of qualifying for the Final Phase open. 

FIBA