ZANZIBAR (Tanzania) – The final eight spots in the Women’s Basketball League-Africa (WBL-Africa) Zone 5 qualifiers are now allocated and there is no more room for missteps.
Egyptian champions Al Ahly Sporting Club faced JKL Lady Dolphins in the final match of the group stage. The former won their third match 100-61 to remain undefeated, while the seconds suffered their first defeat of the competition.
In the first quarter, Al Ahly SC made a series of 7 of 10 three-pointers that killed the momentum of the Ugandan team, which trailed 24-14 in the first five minutes.
Nadine Mohamed
Nadine Mohamed led the charge with nine points, all from beyond the arc, Pauline Hersler adding two more points, with Al Ahly leading 36-21 in the first quarter.
JKL managed to play a better second quarter to reduce the deficit to 10 in the first half, Cool Becky Longom doing the heavy lifting on both ends of the court. Inside Ekone et Rita Imanishime scored twice in a row.
However, Reem Moussa et Raneem Elgedawy continued to be a thorn for JKL, contributing 8 assists and 17 points respectively, as the quarter ended 20-19, to bring their team to 56-40 at the end of the first half.
An 18-15 performance for the Egyptians in the third quarter saw them lead by 19 points until the final period where they scored 26-06 to reach their third 100-point victory.
Cool Becky Longom
Nadine Mohamed led the charge for Al Ahly SC with 25 points, four more than Raneem who added five rebounds. Don’t miss Kane took the lead in rebounds with 11, adding seven assists for 19 efficiency.
Longom, meanwhile, continued her impressive performance for JKL, recording her second double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Ekone and Imanishimwe also managed to reach double figures with 12 and 11 points respectively.
Attention now shifts to the quarter-finals which will take place on Thursday October 31.
FIBA
