Thiam remains upbeat despite Senegal's losses to China

DAKAR (FIBA Women's AfroBasket 2017) - Senegal lost all three of their friendlies against China last week in Beijing, but shooting guard Oumoul Thiam insists there is no reason for disappointment.

The trip to China marked the opening of the African champions' preparations for FIBA Women's AfroBasket 2017 in Mali in September (15-24).

"The most important thing was to have given these players an opportunity to face a high-level team before the FIBA Women's AfroBasket." - Gaye

Senegal lost the opener 100-63 against the hosts, before conceding a pair of 65-36 defeats.

"It was a great experience. Unfortunately we lost [all three games]," Thiam explained to FIBA.com. "We went to China with a very young team and we knew it would be tough to go out there and win. So instead we just focused on going out there and getting better. We learned a lot, It was a good first step in our preparations for [FIBA Women's] AfroBasket 2017."

The Senegalese are expected to hold two more training camps before they travel to Bamako to defend their continental title.

While head coach Moustapha Gaye admitted his team needs some improvement, the two-time African champion remains optimistic.

Talking to local paper Sudonline, he said: "We hope in the coming days to strengthen the team with the arrival of Aya Traore and Astou Traore.

"We faced a very strong Chinese team. I appreciated the overall attitude of my players in China. The preparations [before the tournament in China] were short and we paid the price for it. The most important thing was to have given these players an opportunity to face a high-level team before the FIBA Women's AfroBasket."

The 10 sides qualified for the 12-team FIBA Women's AfroBasket 2017 so far include Senegal, Cameroon, Mali, Tunisia, Cote d'Ivoire, Nigeria, Egypt, Mozambique, Guinea and Angola.

Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo will compete for the only ticket on offer for FIBA Africa Zone 4 for the Final Round.

A wild card will be awarded at a later date to complete the lineup.

FIBA