Santos-Silva powers Cape Verde in win over Uganda
In his first-ever game for Cape Verde, Massachusetts native Marcus Santos-Silva came up with a man-of-match performance to help the islanders to a winning start to the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket.
MONASTIR (Tunisia) - In his first-ever game for Cape Verde, Massachusetts native Marcus Santos-Silva came up with a man-of-match performance to help the islanders to a winning start to the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket Qualifiers.
The 26-year-old was a dominant force on both ends of the floor as the Blue Sharks beat Uganda 78-73 in the opener of Group B.
Defense, Cape Verde head coach Emanuel Trovoada, noted, was “fundamental to this important win.”
Indeed, Cape Verde tirelessly fought for every possession, which prompted Uganda coach Mandy Juruni to admit that “they played great and were the better team.”
Robinson Opong finished with a game-high 25 points, but his effort wasn’t enough to rescue Uganda in the opener of their Group B campaign.
TURNING POINT: Although Uganda used a 10-0 run to close the first half just two points behind (34-32), Cape Verde kept their best for the third quarter, which technically ended Uganda’s hope to contest.
The islanders of Cape Verde went on to lead by as many as 21 points (69-48) in the third quarter, leaving no doubt as to who the winner of the game would be.
It was then, when Trovoada decide to rest his starting line-up and bring in a bench comprised of really young players.
“That’s the goal,” Trovoada said. “We need to give young players a chance to play at this level.”
STATS DON’T LIE: Obviously, Cape Verde moved the ball better, creating several shooting opportunities, but it was its bench that set the tone.
Inspired by Santos-Silva and veteran Joel Almeida, Cape Verde’s bench outscored Uganda’s 41-10 to stamp the difference between the two sides.
While Uganda were superb from long range, making 11 off their 34 three-point attempts, they lacked efficiency in te painted area, where Cape Verde came up on top 48-18.
GAME HERO: Santos-Silva made his presence felt like a regular member of the Blue Sharks, but, in fact, it was his debut.
The 6-foot-8 power forward only needed 22 minutes on the floor to showcase his immense potential and value to the islanders.
Santos-Silva was 7-for-11 from the floor to finish with a team-high 15 points, he grabbed 6 rebounds while dishing out 3 assists.
BOTTOM LINE: It was a significant win for semi-finalist of the last African Championship.
In their first appearance since their FIBA Basketball World Cup debut, Cape Verde looked consistent and solid despite missing two influential figures, Ivan Almeida and Walter Tavares.
It was the fifth meeting between Cape Verde and Uganda, dating back to the second qualifying window of the 2021 AfroBasket Qualifiers held in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in November 2020.
FIBA