KAMPALA (Uganda) - The road to the 2023 FIBA Women's AfroBasket Qualifiers gets underway Tuesday with the FIBA Africa Zone 5 Championship first off the blocks in Kampala, Uganda.

The six-day show (February 14-19) will bring together five teams led by reigning champions Kenya who will have to battled against Egypt, Rwanda, South Sudan and host Uganda for the ticket to this year's Women's AfroBasket tournament slated for July in Kigali, Rwanda.

The team that will be left standing when the dust finally settles on Sunday will join back to back champions Nigeria, Senegal, Mali and Cameroon, the quartet qualified from the 2021 Women’s African Championship in Yaounde, Cameroon.

Who will punch their tickets to the continental festival? 

Uganda are anxious to return to the high table. Kenya are eyeing to defend their regional title, Egypt are ready to climb back to the top as Rwanda and South Sudan hope to make a name in the show.

Kenya, who also qualified for the last two AfroBasket shows, incidentally also held in Kampala, hope to ride on their good luck. They have retained their bed rock from the previous tournament making a few additions.

Medina Okot, the new sensation after her exploits for Kenya Ports Authority in the 2022 FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women in Maputo, Mozambique where she crushed the boards pulling down  20 rebounds in one game, will play a key role.

Diaspora-based trio of Victoria Reynolds, Mercy Wanyama (Spain) and  Rose Ouma will provide the much-needed experience while providing the baskets in the absence of Felmas Koranga who is unavailable. Melissa Otieno will captain the side.

Home support needed for the Gazelles 

After two missed opportunities since their maiden outing in Cameroon in 2015, Uganda will hope that their raucous home crowd will show up at the MTN Arena, Lugogo to spur them to victory.

After missing out in the qualifiers shows in 2014 and 2019 in tournaments played in Kampala, Uganda have assembled the team, and are high they will be standing at the top when the championship finally ends.

They have in Jannon Otto, who plays for Musel Pikes (Luxembourg) and 19-year-old Najjuma Maria currently in the NBA Africa Academy, to look up to, and there is the evergreen play maker Flavia Okatch Flavio, still available to play a leading role for the Gazelles.

Rwanda on a learning curve for the Final Phase

Rwanda started the 2021 Qualifiers on a roll, winning their opener by stunning Kenya 77-45 in their first game before being pegged down by eventual winners Kenya and Egypt in the end.

Considering that they already have their feet there, the results will be used very much a guideline to the big show coming up in Kigali.

Can Egypt bounce back?

Egypt were untouched in the region for many years until things started to go downhill in nearly ten years ago.

They stopped Kenya 107-106 in a thriller that saw both teams reach triple figures for the first time in the region.

Despite pulling out that historic performance, the pharaohs went on to lose to Kenya 99-83 in storming finals game. Whether coach Ehab El-Alfy and Egypt will lose their grip this time round remains to be seen.

Sporting Alexandria Club's triumph in the 2022 FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women as well in the FIBA Zone Five Club show in Dare Es salaam, Tanzania will spur Egyptian basketball back to life.

Standout Amer Hagar will be missing but the industrious and tigerish Souraya Degheidy and the speedy play maker Reem Moussa will be available to dictate the tempo to make Egypt great again.

South Sudan

In their debut in Kigali two years ago, South Sudan did not really know what to expect  but they found out early that nothing was easy as they slumped to all losses soaking points.

But the positive thing from that outing was that by just making an appearance, a giant step was made going forward.

Team manager Deng Ajou Deng, told FIBA.basketball that they can build on the gains made and move on from there as the players have excelled individually around the globe.

"Collectively, they will hopefully usher in a new era in this tournament and for women's basketball in South Sudan.”

Their hopes lie on the shoulders of Perina Leime,  Acheil Tac and Israel-based Adut Bulgak, who was forced out by an injury and will be going all out to make her presence felt.

FIBA