Mali's U18 teams dominate Tournoi de l'Amitié
The Tournoi de l'Amitié, a tournament for young basketball players from East and North Africa, ended on Monday in Bamako, Mali, with the host country's two teams defeating Tunisia in the final.
BAMAKO (Mali) - The Tournoi de l'Amitié, a tournament for young basketball players (boys and girls) from East and North Africa, ended on Monday in Bamako, Mali, with the host country's two teams defeating Tunisia in the final.
The boys came out on top 92-76, while their female counterparts prevailed 67-37.
This year's tournament, which is fast becoming a must-attend event for teams wishing to test their mettle, welcomed, in addition to Mali, the U18 national teams of Tunisia, Guinea and Senegal in the boys' category.
The women's tournament saw the participation of Mali and Tunisia. Côte d'Ivoire declined the invitation, forcing the organizing committee to call on Djoliba AC and Stade Malien, as well as Mail's U17 team.
Mali's home supremacy shone through.
The boys put in a perfect performance right through to the final, where they came out on top.
Buoyed by Abdourahmane Maiga's performance in the final (20 points, 10 rebounds), the Eagles didn't waver when it came to facing Tunisia, whom they defeated 97-76.
Previously, the Malians had taken a firm option for the semi-finals in the initial phase, with a series of three wins in as many games, against Guinea (97-64), Tunisia (79-69) and Senegal (66-55).
Guaranteed to finish at the top by the end of the first phase, they then took on Guinea in the semi-finals with a 92-70 victory, qualifying for the final match against Tunisia, who beat Senegal 67-55 in the other semi-final.
Tunisia, on the other hand, finished the group phase with one win (against Guinea 92-88) and two losses.
In the women's competition, Mali beat Tunisia 67-37 to claim the trophy.
They got the tournament off to a flying start with a 72-54 win over Tunisia, before falling to Stade Malien (70-57) and then their U17 counterparts (63-55).
But they bounced right back with a convincing victory over Djolilba AC (74-56).
Meanwhile, the Tunisians came from behind to beat Mali U17 (68-66), but suffered a setback against Stade Malien (81-62) before drawing level with Djoliba AC (56-56).
Mali's U17 team took third place in the women's tournament.
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Individual awards were handed to Guinean Keyssane Massengo, who claimed the tournament's MVP title, while Roussi Rayen took home the top scorer trophy.
Mali's Mallé Doumbia took the women's MVP trophy as well as the top scorer award, with 61 points.
FIBA