BOITUMELO RANTAO
TUNISIA defeated Cote D’Ivoire 78-75 in the African Basketball Championship (AfroBasket) final in Kigali, Rwanda to be crowned kings of African basketball.
The Carthage Eagles (Tunisia’s Senior Men’s team) defended their 2019 AfroBasket crown with glory – finishing the 2021 edition undefeated in six games.
The Ivorians equalled their best AfroBasket finish at the 30th edition, since earning silver at the 2009 AfroBasket tournament in Tripoli, Libya.
Tunisia’s Makram Ben Romdhane was named the 2021 FIBA AfroBasket MVP. In a starring role with the champions, Ramdhoane scored 8 points in the final with a solid 10 rebounds.
Cote D’Ivoire got out of the blocks, focused and took an early lead. Four minutes into the first Micheal Roll connected on a deep three pointer, giving Tunisia a two-point lead, and they never looked back.
Guard Micheal Roll led the Tunisians with 20 points and a mammoth 9 assists in the win. Souleyman Diabate fought back admirably for the Ivorians totalling 20 points in just under 30 minutes.
Senegal, who beat Cape Verde 86-73 in the Third-Place Game on Sunday, finished with 5-1 mark, on equal terms with second place Cote D’Ivoire. Senegal has now finished 3rd at the tournament for the fourth time in a row, as fourth place finishers Cape Verde recorded three wins out of six games.
Magnificent Liz Mills
Kenyan National team coach Liz Mills made history at the FIBA 2021 AfroBasket by becoming the first female coach at a men’s major continental tournament.
The Australian led Team Morans (Kenya’s Senior Men’s basketball team) to their first AfroBasket in 28 years – assuming the role of head coach before the AfroBasket qualifiers in November 2020.
Picture: supplied/FIBA AfroBasket 2021 – Liz Mills
Coach Mills set the basketball world alight – showcasing an elite ability to lead and refine the talents of young players into competition ready athletes. The Morans finished the tournament with one loss and three wins, on par with North African powerhouse Egypt, after a lengthy hiatus out of the major competition.
Beasts from the East
Uganda and South Sudan were the surprise package of the 30th edition of AfroBasket. The Ugandan Silverbacks finished with two wins and three losses including a victory over 2015 AfroBasket champions Nigeria. After the 80-62 win over Nigeria, the Silverbacks matched up with Cape Verde in the quarter-finals. Uganda would eventually lose the fixture 79-71, with Toronto Raptors signee Ishmail Wainwright scoring 13 in his AfroBasket curtain call.
Picture: supplied/FIBA AfroBasket 2021 – Dheiu Abwok Dieng
South Sudan, in their first appearance at the AfroBasket tournament, made it past the group stage – including a memorable victory against 6th place finishers Uganda. Luol Deng’s warriors would eclipse the round of 16, but met their match in eventual champions Tunisia in the quarter-final. South Sudan fell to Tunisia 80-65 to finish 7th at their inaugural major continental tournament.
