Kenya's Olympic dreams shattered after winless run in FIBA 3X3 Qualifying Tournament
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Reading Time: 2min | Sat. 04.05.24. | 16:21
Defeat to Kangaroos was followed by a whacking by the Dutch to all but dim Kenya's hopes
Kenya women’s 3x3 basketball team will not participate in this year’s Paris 2024 Olympic Games after failing to secure a victory in three of their FIBA 3X3 Universality Olympic Qualifying Tournament 2 matches in Utsunomiya, Japan.
The squad, led by coach Evelyn Kedogo, after falling to a 19-12 defeat to favorites Canada in their opening game on Friday, needed to win both of the matches on Saturday but failed to do so, finishing bottom of Pool B with 28 points and without a chance to progress to the knock-out stages.
Kenya’s first assignment was against Australia, where after taking a lead through Natalie Akinyi’s basket, fell 5-3 with over seven minutes remaining in the contest.
A poor shooting form - 4 of 12 from the paint and 2 for 8 from two - followed by a 4-0 run for the Kangaroos, took the game away from the Kenyans on their way to a 22-9 loss.
The second game was even worse from a Kenyan perspective, as they never led; falling to 3-0 and 11-4 holes on another shooting nightmare that ended up in a 21-7 advantage for Netherlands, who only finished third in the pool with 48 points.
Kenya’s top scorer on the day was Victoria Reynolds, who scored four points in each contest, with Akinyi scoring four total points.
Moving on to the knock-outs from Pool B are Australia and Canada, who play Brazil and Germany respectively in Saturday’s late semifinals.
Only one team - the overall winner - will make the cut for the Summer Games.
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