PRETORIA (South Africa) - The final day of group play saw Angola, Nigeria, Senegal and Mali finish on a high.
Here's what happened on the last day of the Group Phase at the U18 AfroBasket 2024:
Senegal move on
Senegal secured their Quarter-Final spot after outclassing Cameroon 72-56 in their Group A clash.
El Hadji Diahame (15) and Ousseynou Sambe (13) led the Senegalese team in scoring, while Cameroon's Dan Ejenguele led all scorers with 17. Herman Bel notched a double-double (13 points and 14 rebounds) for Cameroon.
Senegal and Cameroon came into the clash with a victory and a loss, so a win for either country would help them secure a ticket to the knockout stages.
Senegal's Diahame led the scoring (12 points) in a hotly contested first half that saw the West African nation lead the game 27-26.
Bench step up for Senegal
Senegal benefitted from their bench, which outscored Cameroon 47-8, while Cameroon made the most from second-chance points (23-11).
It was still a close affair in the third. Whenever Senegal tried to get away, Cameroon would claw back. A three from Biteye gave the West Africans a 37-32 lead, but Ejenguele hit back with a triple for his country to cut the lead to two.
The flood of points for Senegal forced Cameroon coach Kevin Ngwesse to call a time-out, but it did little to disrupt the opposition's momentum. A Biteye bucket and a windmill dunk by Sambe from a fastbreak made it 60-42 to Senegal.
From there, it was over as a contest as Senegal marched to a second-group win.
Sulaimon leads from the front
Azeez Sulaimon led Nigeria to a 71-61 victory over Uganda after posting a 23 points, six rebounds and eight steals performance against the East Africans.
Sulaimon, the Nigerian captain, was not alone in his heroic performance. Double-doubles from teammates Ekpo Bassey (13 points and 13 rebounds) and Isaac Ezekiel (13 points and 13 rebounds) increased the J'Tigers' chances of qualifying for the quarter-finals.
Mukisa Mubiru-Nkugwa's 17 points and Brighton Galiwongo's 16 points contributed to Uganda's efforts.
The Junior Silverbacks made it an interesting game in the fourth quarter after they tried to overturn a 16-point lead (57-41). Before the last quarter, Nigeria dominated the first half and the third quarter but was lax for a good part of the fourth.
"In the fourth quarter, we were all tired, so there were lapses here and there," said Bassey. "I had a bad game the last time. So today, I had come out strong to help my team win."
Mali stutters to a perfect record
Mali finished their Group A campaign with a 3-0 record after beating a stubborn Cote d'Ivoire 73-69 in the final game of Group A.
The game was more about bragging rights for Mali. For their winless opponents, it was more for pride.
Mamadou Diarra of Mali led all scorers with 18 points, while Youssef Traore recorded a double-double (10 points and 16 rebounds), and Ibrahim Doumbia scored 15 points.
Cote d'Ivoire had four players score in double figures, Alexandre Lomby (16), Gomis Boedi (15), Caleb Ourigou (14) and Zie Conde (13).
First Angola win over Egypt since 2016
After four straight defeats to Egypt in 2018 and 2022 (twice), Angola upset the Pharaohs for the first time since the 2016 Final in Kigali.
The Angolans breathed a huge breath of relief after prevailing 57-54 in a Group B battle.
The win means Angola qualify for the Quarter-Finals after finishing second in their group, behind Egypt.
Angola's Matues Abream led all scorers with 17 points, while team captain Aginaldo Neto scored 13.
Egypt's Mohammed Hussin, like Neto, scored 13.
Emotions ran high, and Egyptian coach Ahmed Al Garhi got hit with a technical foul for his protestation after feeling Hussin was fouled on his drive to the bucket.
Neto would seal the deal at the free throw line by converting his shots to ensure Angola won.
FIBA