CAIRO (Egypt) - Women's Basketball League Africa (WBLA) debutants Sporting Clube de Luanda recorded their first-ever win on the continental stage, beating Cote d'Ivoire's Friend's Basketball Association (FBA) 65-40. Mozambique forward Eleuteria Lhavanguane, returning to the competition since her silver-winning stint with Costa do Sol at home, showed out, leading the Angolan side to the 15-point victory, subjecting last year's fifth-place finishers to their second loss in a row. Lhavanguane, a 2018 champion with Ferroviario de Maputo, shot 9-of-14, including three from deep in four attempts, to finish the match with a game-high 26 points. She was one of two players to hit double digits, with Magda Mussol the other, recording 11. She opened her tally from behind the arc to level the score at 5, adding one more six minutes into the match to stretch the side's lead to 12-8 as she went on to drop 10 in a 17-12 opening quarter. She got the second quarter underway from range to build momentum for the Angolan who led 24-16 halfway through the stanza, but the Ivorians refused to go, fighting to trail 31-22 at halftime.
A steal for a fast break layup as the second half got underway gave Sporting Clube de Luanda an 11-point cushion (33-22), a difference she made sure remained at 35-24,with Mussol adding five for 41-14. A 14-5 third quarter in favour of Angela Cardoso's charges all but sealed their historic victory as they carried an 18-point advantage to the final quarter. To add to her 9-of-14 shooting, she provided five assists, added four steals and two rebounds for 27 in efficiency rating. Mussol, meanwhile, was good for seven rebounds, five steals and three assists in a match where the Angolan managed not to concede from 16 turnovers, while punishing FBA's 31 for 29 points. "Congratulations to the entire team for the great job today. We gave our best. We have a good team with great players and personalities and this win means a lot to me. We now keep our focus on the coming matches after this win," the two-time silver medalist, Lhavanguane told FIBA.Basketball.
FIBA