Four Southern African countries set to compete for solo ticket for 2023 Women's AfroBasket

 

BULAWAYO (Zimbabwe) - The race for FIBA Africa Zone 6 for the 2023 FIBA Women's AfroBasket gets underway on Monday, February 20 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, with four nations set to do battle to earn the solo ticket on offer for the Final Phase. 

This regional qualifier aimed at teams from the Southern African countries will run until February 28.

Participating teams include Angola, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The winner of the Bulawayo showpiece join reigning champions Nigeria, Senegal, Mali and Cameroon, who qualified by virtue of reaching the 2021 Women’s AfroBasket Semi-Finals.

All games will be streamed live on FIBA's Youtube Channel.

Angola on the road to redemption

When they grabbed the continental title in 2013, little did the Angolans know that it would be the last time they would get to the podium.

In the following editions, they couldn't even clinch the bronze medal, failing in the Semi-Finals (2015, Yaounde), Quarter-Finals (Bamako, 2017, Dakar, 2019, Yaounde, 2021).

Italee Lucas

In the latter, they finished 8^th, their worst-ever finish at a Women’s AfroBasket.

But it seems that they have learnt from their mistakes. Since their last appearance, the squad has changed.

In fact, coach Jaime Covilha has seen to it that the group gets a good lifting. The average age has gone down from 30 years old to 25 years old.

But he has once again given the keys to Angola's success to Italee Lucas, the 34-year-old shooting guard. Covilha has also called in some players from the last Women’s AfroBasket, and counts on their experience to make the difference.

Angola will have to battle against rivals Mozambique for the ticket to Kigali, the site of this year's Women's AfroBasket.

Can Mozambique top Angola?

Mozambique share a 1-1 record dating back to the 2017 Women's AfroBasket. 

Although Angola won their last battle two years ago in Yaounde, Mozambique will surely give it all against their most ferocious opponent. This side also has some players returning from their last campaign.

Mozambique have never won the continental title and will do everything in their power to change this narrative. Their journey towards the crown starts this Monday.

To make sure Mozambique kicks off in the right way, coach Carlos Aik has prepared a mix of young hopefuls and seasoned veterans, led by Tamara Seda and Invigild Mucauro, who are two of the longest serving players on the team.

Tamara Seda

It sure looks like these two teams will battle for the ticket. But they should be wary of the other two teams, Zambia and Zimbabwe, will look to give a hard time to these two powerhouses. But, to upset the giants, they will have to level up even harder.

These two teams, however, lack some experience at this level of competition. And this will definitely play against them. But causing an upset would open up the doors of the 2023 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket.

FIBA