ABIDJAN (Cote d’Ivoire) – The reigning FIBA U18 Women’s AfroBasket champions, Mali, easily defeated Benin 124-20 in their opening match at the Salle Polyvalente in Treichville. Meanwhile, Egypt demonstrated their superiority over Morocco with a 89-36 victory.
Take a look back at the opening day of Group B action.
Mali hit century in win over Benin
Mali, the perennial winners of the FIBA U18 Women’s AfroBasket, made no pretensions about defending their title when they played Benin in a lopsided game that ended 124-20.
The seven-time champions (last decade) hit the century mark with a three-point shot by Awa Bathé and did not slow down.
Though Benin's young women drew first blood from the jump ball with a shot by Umberline Adjovi, it took Mali less than a minute to respond with a shot by Aminata Samaka. From then on, Mali coasted to victory, leaving nothing to chance and demonstrating their superiority.
By halftime, with the score at 64–16, it was clear who controlled the floor and dictated the pace, despite Benin's efforts to prove they weren't in Abidjan just to make up the numbers.
Though Stivine Tchiakpe led Benin in scoring with nine points before going out in the fourth quarter due to injury, she admits that her team was afraid of Mali, who have won the championship nine times.
Mali stole the ball 48 times and scored 70 points.
"Before coming into this game, Mali was the last champion," she said, adding that the team felt significant pressure having that in mind. We were tensed and it showed early. Secondly, it was a very physical game, but we hope to let this defeat off us and look forward to other games with so much pressure,” Tchiakpe added.
Mali had a good day at the office through Suzane Dembele with a game-high 22 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists for the 19:15 minutes she was on the floor. Aside from Dembele, no less than four other players on the Mali side were in double figures. They include Couda Keita (19), Maimouna Traore (18), Awa Bathe (14) and Ivette Bomba (11).
Dembele said that he is very happy for her team’s win. “I’m pleased with my personal performance in this first game because it is good for us as a team. The ultimate goal is for us to win the title again.”
Egypt outclass Morocco
Still in Group B, Egypt left Morocco wondering where they went wrong from the start of the game.
Egypt prevailed, winning 89-36.
Egypt dominated throughout, ensuring a comfortable win over Morocco.
Hania Hassabelnaby led Egypt with 24 points. Coach Tarek Abouzied gave playing time to everyone to avoid injuries in this opener.
“We wanted to avoid injuries and had to be strategic about our formation. The Morocco team is very technical but we had the opportunity of scouting them during the qualifiers, which helped us in this game,” the play caller said.
Joining Hassabelnaby in the double digits were Leila Eissa with 16 points and Fatma Abdella with 11.
Marwa Abdelkader led Morocco with 13 points, and Douae Laachir added 10, but their efforts were not enough to change the tide of the game. Egypt led throughout, and Morocco never came close.
Morocco only scored 11 points off turnovers, while Egypt scored 51. Morocco had only nine fast-break points, while Egypt had 13.
Morocco also trailed in second-chance points with five to Egypt’s 15, and they managed 12 points in the paint to Egypt’s 48.
Reacting after the game, Laachir said Egypt was a difficult team to play. “We played a difficult side and it has not been easy, though we didn’t play well today. However, we look forward to getting better."
Both teams will be on the court again on Saturday when Egypt takes on Benin while Mali battles against Morocco.
FIBA