FIBA Afrobasket Q: Lionesses end disastrous campaign fourth

Kenya’s women basketball side - Lionesses - finished fourth in the concluded FIBA Africa Women’s Afrobasket Qualifiers in Cairo, Egypt, while also having one of their standout players in the tournament’s All Star Team.

The 2021 Zone Five defending champions, as has been the case through the championships, were unimpressive from the start of their third-place playoff against South Sudan, eventually going down 80-63 for a new Kenyan low.

Going behind 19 points in the opening quarter was not the recipe for Kenyan success, as they played catch up the entire match.

Efforts from Christine Akinyi and Jemimah Omondi early in the second quarter had Kenya claw back into the contest, but they ended up letting up a late buzzer-beater from Adut Bulgak, before going down 18-12 and 15-13 in the third and fourth quarters respectively.

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Speaking after the game, Kenya’s head coach George Mayienga sounded like a broken record telling FIBA: “We started low, caught up in the second, but did not have the energy to keep going in the second half.

“I however, pick positives in the way the team played in the third quarter, as that has been our biggest undoing.”

Kenya, who were outrebounded 56-41, also lost to South Sudan in the group stages, and finished the tournament with just two wins - over lowly Burundi.

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On a positive note however, Kenya’s Victoria Reynolds was named in the team of the tournament, alongside MVP Jane Asinde of Uganda, South Sudan guard Delicia Washington, Egyptian shooting guard Nadine Mohamed, and center Raneem Elgedawy.

The small forward averaged a tournament second 19.2 points per game, scoring a total 96 points - just two behind leader Washington.

In the final, Uganda stunned hosts Egypt 74-63, effectively booking their Afrobasket tickets to Abidjan later this year.