MLI – Sissoko: `No one player plays for herself – that’s what makes us special’

HAINING (2008 FIBA Diamond Ball for Women) – Mali raised a lot of eyebrows by upsetting hosts Senegal to capture the gold medal at last year’s FIBA Africa Championship for Women.

On Saturday at the FIBA Diamond Ball for Women, they gave China all they could handle for nearly three quarters before the hosts pulled away for a 91-67 win.

Djenebou Sissoko turned in an all-star performance for the Africans, especially in the first half when she scored 18 of her 24 points.

The 26-year-old center, despite the defeat, was all smiles after the game.

“We feel we are really good and we’re looking forward to the Olympic Games,” she said to FIBA.Com. “But we know we still have a lot of work to do.”

Mali will be in Group B at the Olympics with the Chinese, three-time defending champions Team USA, European powerhouses Spain and the Czech Republic, and New Zealand.

Sissoko first joined the national team when she was 18.

She didn’t play on last summer’s team because of her graduation at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee.

The biggest Mali star is Hamchetou Maiga. She is a player with the Houston Comets and averaged almost eight points and more than three rebounds per game before the WNBA Olympic break.

Maiga, Sissoko says, is an inspiration to everyone in Mali and all over Africa.

“She works so hard,” Sissoko said, “and we play together on the same team here.

“No one player plays for herself, though.

“That’s what makes our team special.”

FIBA