Morocco outlast Rwanda in the fourth quarter to clinch first win

 

LUANDA (Angola) – Rwanda were engaged in an attempt to secure their first win at the 2023 FIBA AfroCan - after they lost their opening game to Tunisia on Saturday - but Morocco proved too much to beat.

At the final buzzer Rwanda were left wondering how they wasted a 17-point lead to lose 59-58.

The last two missed free-throw attempts by William Robeyns, which would have tied the game, will forever haunt the Rwandans. Same goes to the 23 missed attempts from behind the arc.

Kevin Franceschi 

Mohamed Choua and Kevin Franceschi led the way for Morocco as they finished with 16 and 11 points respectively, while Jean-Jacques Nshobozwabyosenumukiza and Dieudonne Ndizeye each contributed 11 and 10 points to the Rwandan cause.

TURNING POINT: After trailing for most of the game, Morocco used a 5-0 run to take a 55-52 lead with five minutes left, and they never looked back despite Rwanda's attempt to stay in the game. 

STATS DON’T LIE : Morocco did a great job exploiting Rwanda's turnovers, scoring 26 points from there. They were also more skilful from inside the paint, where they outscored their opponents  36-26.

Rwanda, however, did a better job in the boards, out-rebounding Morocco 36-33.

But the key stat of this game remains in the leading time. Rwanda were in front for a total of 32:12 minutes, but Morocco stepped up when it mattered most to lead the remaining 6 minutes of the game.

Mohamed Choua 

HERO : Discreet, yet efficient. This is how Mohamed Choua performed today. He went on to score 16 points and grab 6 rebounds. His contribution became even more valuable when one realizes how far Morocco came from to take over this combative Rwanda team.

BOTTOM LINE : Morocco knew they did not have much space for errors for their continental return. And they did not fail in their task as they put on a very combative display, coming back from behind to win.

The 59-58 final score shows how intense the game was. And though they were led by as much as 17 points, they left no stone unturned to start their FIBA AfroCan campaign on a good note.

As for Rwanda, they have once again lacked the cool to win and now sit third of Group C. And playing without dependable Kenneth Gasana keeps proving costly for Rwanda.

Rwanda's last chance to stay in contention is the Classification Round to the Quarter-Finals, where they will take on the team that finishes second in Group D on Wednesday, July 12. 

Soufiane Benhmine

THEY SAID : “For a first game together, we get away with the win. So we're more than happy about it. Looking at the game from both sides, let's just say both teams were a bit unsure and feverish in their play. As for Morocco, we found our rhythm in the second quarter and it was all for the better for us. Now that we have that first win, we're going to fight for our next game and we'll try to make something happen. It's been a while since we've been in an African competition and we are going to fight with all our might." - Morocco guard Kevin Franceschi.

FIBA