ANTANANARIVO (Madagascar) – Egypt qualified for FIBA AfroBasket 2025 with a 75-71 victory over Central African Republic (CAF).
But before they could celebrate a second successive win over CAF, they had to go through all sorts of emotions before improving their overall record to 3-1.
It was CAF who made things interesting early on. Evans Ganapamo, Jimmy Djimrabaye and Allan Dokossi took them into a 13-6 lead.
So much so that they went into the second quarter with a meagre one-point lead (20-19) after Egypt came back into the game at the instigation of Ehab Amin.
The game became a tug-of-war between the two teams, but it looked as though the CAF were in control, although they only led by three points at half-time.
But things changed dramatically when Egypt went on a 15-0 run to take the lead and never looked back.
CAF came close to forcing extra time when Jimmy Djimrabaye hit from behind the arc to bring his side within 71-74. But it was too little, too late. Egypt ran out winners.
TURNING POINT: After half-time, Egypt went on a 15-0 run to take control of the game. At the break CAF led 47-40. But Omar Oraby, Yusuf Shehata, Amr Zahran, Anas Mahmoud, Omar El-Sheikh and Ehab Amin kept the Pharaohs in front.
HERO: If you asked anyone who should be the hero of the match, the answer would be Ehab Amin. Egypt's combo guard was a little shy at first, but as the game progressed, he came into his own.
Egypt owe him a lot. Firstly, his 14 points were more than crucial. Then he seemed to bring a burst of energy with him as he grabbed two rebounds, dished out two assists and added a steal to his stats.
STATS DON'T LIE: There were seven lead changes in the game, and the last time Egypt took the lead, they never looked back. But it was their 22 of 33 2-point field goals that mattered most, while CAF made just 11 of 28. CAF's 21 turnovers did not help their cause as they struggled to get back into the game.
BOTTOM LINE : Egypt are now on a 3-1 winning streak and have secured their ticket for the Angola showdown in August.
On the other hand, things are not looking good for CAF, who are now down to 0-4. They desperately need a win to keep their hopes alive. But from what they showed today, their next opponents will have to be on their guard.
WHAT THEY SAID: “We’re used to this kind of situation. So, we need to shift our focus to our next games. This first game is done and dusted, and we can’t replay it. What’s important now is how we focus on the next games. This is a competition and we need to play hard in every game and not only focus on Madagascar. The team is different from the one that were in Cairo, and I feel we have made so much progress.” Max Kougere, CAF captain.
“One of the key things for our strength is that we’ve been having the same pool of players. We just got here two weeks ago, and it’s been tough to adjust, but once we do, we’re going to be a very dangerous team.” Egypt point guard, Ehad Amin.
FIBA