SEN - Sene: "There are no underdogs in Group B"

ANTIBES (FIBA Basketball World Cup) - Senegal's center Saer Sene disagrees that his country along with the Philippines are the underdogs of Group B of 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, which also includes Croatia, Greece, Argentina and Puerto Rico.

For Sene, Senegal's 41st place in the FIBA Ranking Men, behind the Philippines (34th), does not necessary mean that both teams are to be trounced.

"They should not rule us out. There are no underdogs in this group because are all at same level," the 2.11m big man told FIBA.com.

The teams that finish in the top four of each group qualify for the next round, and Sene says he will do everything he can to take Senegal beyond Sevilla, where Group B action takes place.

"People keep saying that Croatia, Greece and Argentina are the strongest teams in the group. I'm afraid but I disagree. There is no such thing in a tournament of this dimension, because of the high competitiveness involved.

"It is not only between Senegal and the Philippines to compete for the last two places in the group. There are no unbeatable teams in our pool," Sene explained.

Rehabilitation underway

But before Sene puts his views into practice, he needs to be physically ready.

The 28-year-old, who led Senegal in rebounding with 6.7 boards and averaged 1.2 blocks per game at AfroBasket 2013, hurt his left knee while playing for Antibes in France's top flight last November, and he has been inactive since.

But as he says, his rehabilitation "is going well" and he hopes to "return in May, on time to join the national team preparations."

"I have been working very hard from Monday to Saturday. I have already started to run, lifting weights, I have been doing cardio and I have lost weight," he said.

As for chances of wearing the Senegalese jersey at Spain 2014, the Pikine-native is adamant that he can contribute.

When he got injured, he spoke to Senegal head coach Cheikh Sarr who wished him a good recovery.

Mindset change needed

Prior to the 16-team African Championship in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire last summer, Senegal - along with Nigeria - were the tallest team, and were rated as favourite to lift the trophy.

And, as the competition moved on, Sene and Co believed they could claim their first continental title since 1997.

But, all of a sudden, expectations changed when they fell to Egypt in the Semi-final.

Senegal secured one of the three places on offer for African teams for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup thanks to a 57-56 win over hosts Cote d’Ivoire in the Third-Place Game.

Now, Sene says, they must do things differently in Spain 2014.

"I still feel bad when I think about the Semi-Final loss. We made a big mistake to underestimate Egypt as we had beaten them in the Preliminary Round," Sene recalled.

“This is no rhetoric, but we will need to come together and make it clear that we are as good as any other team in the World Cup.

"We'll need to change our mindset, develop our togetherness spirit, respect our opponents, not be intimidated, and avoid underestimating team A,B or C," said the former Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks center.

Senegal will make their second appearance in FIBA's flagship event this summer. They made their FIBA World Championship debut in 2006 in Japan.

FIBA