ABIDJAN (Cote d’Ivoire) - Mozambique are through to the 2025 Women's AfroBasket quarterfinals after demolishing Guinea 91-38 in Wednesday's first game of the Classification Round for the Last Eight.
The 53-point loss is the largest in the tournament so far as Guinea suffered over 90 points for the third time in a row.
Masseny Kaba, the only Guinean to score in double figures, finished with 11 points while Leia Dongue led the way for Mozambique finishing with a game-high 17 points and eight rebounds.
TURNING POINT: Aicha Mara of Guinea opened the scoring with a three-pointer, and Masseny Kaba extended the lead to 5-0 by making two of her three free throws.
After four missed shots, Carla Covane and Silvia Veloso scored four straight points for Mozambique, making the score 5-4. Then, Leia Dongue made a fast-break layup, followed by an under-the-basket hook shot, giving them an 8-5 lead.
This was Mozambique’s first, and perhaps defining, game-changing lead.
Guinea remained scoreless for four straight minutes while Mozambique cruised to a 10-0 scoring run.
HERO: Mozambique head coach Nasir Sale was on point by giving more playing time for his entire team. Every Mozambican players scored at least three points while staying on the floor at least six minutes. It was a team win.
STATS DON’T LIE: Guinea struggled to protect their perimeter, which ended their chances in the tournament.
Mozambique sank five shots from deep to take a 27-9 lead at the end of the opening quarter. Mozambique extended their lead to 50-20 at halftime with four more three-pointers in the second quarter. They eventually shot 12-for-40 from behind the arc.
Mishandling offensive plays is never a good sign, and Guinea's 16 turnovers in the opening two quarters revealed their state of mind, which Mozambique capitalized on.
BOTTOM LINE: Two years ago, Guinea pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the tournament by beating Angola 71-69 to advance to the quarterfinals. However, on Wednesday, they were nowhere near that level of play as Mozambique dominated from start to finish despite their slow start to the game.
Guinea's energy fizzled quickly after a promising two minutes, during which they took a 5-0 lead.
As much as coach Malick Kone adjusted his team's game plan and rotated his bench during the first two quarters, things didn't work out for the West Africans.
Mozambique didn't need to rely on its starting lineup for long periods of time because its bench players finished the job in the second half.
Guinea recorded large losses margins against Senegal (92-48), Uganda (88-51), and went down to Mozambique by 53 points.
The loss marks the end of the road for Guinea, while Mozambique moves on to face Mali in the Last Eight.
THEY SAID: "The first key is understanding that you win games quarter by quarter. Today, my team showed significant improvement in our defense, and we intend to continue improving throughout the tournament.
However, I also want to congratulate Guinea on the amazing game they played today. We are improving with each game. Everyone here is competing for the trophy, and we know that Mali is a great team.
[Against Mali] It's going to be tough. Every team here is ready to play. None of the teams are easy. We are going to prepare for Mali in the same way they are preparing for us. It's going to be a battle."
"If I wasn't playing at the level I expect, I wouldn't be here. I would have quit like Michael Jordan, but so far, so good. I want to thank my teammates. They find me for open threes and give me the confidence to play at a high level." - Mozambique small forward, Chanaya Pinto.
"We didn't prepare properly, and that's probably why we can't play for all four quarters. We could see that the team was tired on the court, and I think that's why we lost these games by so many points. We tried to improve with every game and every two years, but it's not an easy situation. This is my fourth AfroBasket, and it continues to grow every two years. As a team, we keep trying to recruit better players, but it's not easy. The level of the tournament keeps growing, too. What's next for Guinea? We will try to do better and lay the groundwork next time." - Guinea forward Aicha Mara.
FIBA