PRETORIA (South Africa)- Four teams are set to battle for a Final berth at the ongoing U18 Women's AfroBasket with two regulars, a debutant and a side returning for the first time in over a decade involved.
As fate would have it, Cameroon who are on a fairly tale run on their debut after finishing second in Group A, take on record champions Mali while Uganda face off with returning Nigeria.
There's more at stake for the four than just the title, now two matches away, as the finalists are assured of tickets to the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup 2025 in the Czechia.
Mali face Cameroon test in quest for Final
Bar their opening match against reigning bronze medalists Angola, holders Mali have shown little signs of cracking but they face an acid test against a resilient Cameroon that has so far stunned with spectacular basketball.
The Diakite Sory-coached Mali are expected to rely on the trio of Oummou Koumare, Oumou Dabo and Mama Sidiki Doumbia who have been their leaders so far, averaging 20, 13.5 and 12.8 points per game respectively.
To counter the defending champions, coach Ange Majolie Lonteu's biggest weapon in her arsenal should be the double-double machine Damaris Emedie. She has scored one in each of the four matches.
In the lead up to the semis, Cameroon recovered from a 73-59 loss in their opening Group A clash against Tunisia to beat South Africa and Rwanda comfortably. They, however, had their hands full in the Quarter-Final against Angola, causing an upset with a 65-63 victory in the dying seconds.
The Central Africans' fighting spirit against a side as experienced as Angola could spell trouble for Mali but the statistics still favour the champions who have averaged 92.5 points per game against Cameroon's 77.5.
Mali's ball distribution is better, their 24 assists average a testament to that. Cameroon have averaged 14. However, it is expected to be a game of small margins.
Nigeria out to stop Uganda in race to the Final
John Omondi's Uganda have their work cut out in their clash against Nigeria in the second Semi Final of the ongoing U18 Women's AfroBasket, despite having won the sides' fixture in the Group Phase.
The 2010 silver medalists, Nigeria, won one game in the Group Phase, a 107-30 outcome against Zimbabwe but got a second chance at fighting for the title after making the Last Eight as one of the two best third-placed finishers.
A rematch in the Quarters against Egypt, a side Nigeria lost 72-60 to in the Group Phase, saw the West Africans turn the tables to beat the Pharaohs 66-51, when it mattered, and advance.
While the Juliana Ojoshogu Negedu-led Nigeria will be fighting for a similar feat against the East Africans, coach Omondi, who has already improved Uganda's ranking from the last edition, will be on a mission of his own as the side looks to make the podium for the first time.
Uganda fell to Egypt in the preliminaries to head to the Quarters on a 2-1 ratio. Up against unbeaten Tunisia in the Last Eight, the Junior Gazelles held their own for a 69-53 victory.
Statistically Nigeria hold a slight advantage over Uganda with the scoring battle expected to be led by Idubamo Beggi and Abigail Isaac for the former and Resty Nanangwe, Modesta Anyango and Mia Belinda for the Ugandans.
FIBA