RADES (Tunisia) - The Sunday night matchup at Salle Multidisciplinaire de Radès was a fiercely contested affair, with power forwards Yacine Toumi (Tunisia) and Majok Deng (South Sudan) stepping up to lead their respective sides.
Toumi won the scoring battle, netting a game-high 24 points, while Deng won the all-round performance, scoring 16 points to go with 11 rebounds, 2 blocks and a differential of 15.
Neither side had a grip on the game that saw 21 lead changes, and all came down to Carlik Jones’ pair of foul shots with 4 seconds on the clock.
The Bright Stars’ head coach, Royal Ivey, admitted the presence of pressure but said it’s something they have embraced.
“We have always had a target on our back for the last two to three years,” Ivey said. “Pressure bursts pipes or makes diamonds, and right now we are diamonds. Pressure is a privilege; it defines your character, and it allows you to grow, and this team has grown,” he added.
“We are not there yet, but we have got bigger aspirations, and we have got to stay focused; we have the third window with one goal, and that goal is to get to the World Cup”
The win for South Sudan lifted them to 7-2, the same record as Group E leaders Cameroon.
FIBA