Reigning champions DR Congo fall in the Semi-Finals

 

LUANDA (Angola) - Morocco held up and ended DR Congo's unbeaten run on Friday to qualify to the 2023 FIBA AfroCan Final.

In a highly contested clash, Morocco prevailed 76-69 to become the first team to beat the DR Congo at AfroCan since the tournament's inception in July 2019.

While Morocco are through to the AfroCan Final, to be held this Sunday, DR Congo will try to save the face in the Third-Place game. 

The Moroccans were barely troubled by a Congolese team that struggled to find their feet in the match.

Although there were a few flashes of brilliancy, Morocco quickly put an end to the DR Congo's ambitions thanks to an outstanding Jihad Benchlikha and a close-knit team on the floor. 

Jihad Benchlikha and Soufiane Benhmine celebrate

Alongside Benchlikha were Soufiane Benhmine, Mohamed Choua, Abdelhakim Zouita and Hamza Foulani, all of whom finished with double-digit scores.

TURNING POINT : Morocco - after suffering the DR Congo's attacks in a hard-fought first quarter - went to halftime with a 43-31 lead.

From then on, the game was under Morocco's control, and they never let it slip out of their hands.

It wasn't until the third quarter that the DRC regained some of their composure (14-14), before putting the Moroccan defense to the sword with a 24-19 scoreline.

But it was too late for the Congolese, who could do nothing to hinder Morocco's forward march.

Soufiane Benhmine

HEROES: Morocco were able to count on some of their key players Soufiane Benhmine, Mohamed Choua, Abdelhakim Zouita and Hamza Foulani, who combined for 54 Morocco points. 

But the day's highlight was Jihad Benchlikha's 15 points, 4 rebounds and six steals. A performance made all the more interesting by the fact that he scored exclusively from the three-point line, with a remarkable 5-for-10.

Moreover, Benchlikha single-handedly extinguished all the DRC's ambitions with his three-point shooting. He scored more than half of his team's shots from distance.

On the DRC side, Pitchou Manga once again contributed a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds; Evariste Shonganya also put in a good performance, with 21 points and 11 rebounds, but his performance wasn't sufficient to halt Morocco's determination.

STATS DON'T LIE: Morocco understood that the more the ball circulated, the better it would be for their interests. And with 22 assists, they annihilated the reigning champions, who finished with just 12 successful passes.

This shows the strength of the Moroccan team in the face of adversity. They were also more effective on interceptions, with a total of 12. Morocco also exploited the Congolese's turnovers, which resulted in 21 points.

Jihad Benchlikha

They said: "Everything worked out for us. I asked the players to stay focused. We wanted to play in the final. We tried to play on the players' morale. But we asked them to make a physical effort, even if they were tired. In the last edition, we finished fourth. We wanted to finish with a result that would be better than that. The DRC team had a poor rearguard and I asked the players to play very quickly on the counter. They followed the instructions and I'm proud of what they achieved. - Labib El Hamrani, Morocco coach.

"It was a tough game at the start, but DR Congo lacked confidence. They're very strong, but that's the game. I'm more than satisfied with my performance. But I also know that we can do more. We've found our rhythm match after match. Honestly, we didn't expect this result." Jihad Benchlikha, Morocco shooting guard.

FIBA