AfroBasket 2021: Sibling rivalry as Morans face South Sudan for a quarter's berth

National men's basketball team, Kenya Morans, saw off Mali in their final group match to book a date with AfroBasket debutants South Sudan for a chance to reach the quarters at the ongoing showpiece in Kigali, Rwanda. 

After a heavy loss to Senegal and an off-court win against Cameroon who lost the game per forfeit on 20-0 due to FIBA's Covid-19 protocols, South Sudan fought to dispense Uganda 88-86 in their final group match. 

This will be Kenya's third meeting with the Luol Deng- coached South Sudan, their second in a competition setting. Morans beat the neighbours 74-68 in Nairobi during the Afrobasket pre-qualifiers in January 2020. Their second meeting was a friendly match during the February 2021 qualification window in Rwanda where the home boys won. 

Morans forward Tylor Ongwae is confident that Kenya’s first win in the tournament, against Mali, will act as a propellant in helping the side advance to the quarter finals of the continental showpiece.

Before getting that first win in 28 years, Morans had twice stumbled in their first two opening matches in Rwanda, losing 88-70 in a spirited fight aganst Ivory Coast before going down again 55-71 against Nigeria who went into the tournament as the first ranked nation in the FIBA African Rankings.

Against Mali, Ongwae, who emerged as man of the match with a double-double after knocking down 16 points and contributing a further eleven rebounds and seven assists, expressed his delight at Kenya winning her first game as he outlined the importance it would have in boosting the confidence and morale of the team. 

“It is great that we have our first win as it has been coming. In the last three games including friendlies, we have been playing really good but we just did not know how to win. That is why it is important that we have gotten this win that is going to propel us to do even better in the next game,” Ongwae said in an interview with FIBA Africa. 

Moving forward to the game against South Sudan, the Denmark-based forward called on his side to put a lot of emphasis on their offensive play if they are to stand a better chance of advancing into the quarters and rubbing shoulders with even tougher opposition who have made it past the group stages.

“We just have to work on our offense. Defensively we are starting to play really good so when we get our offense flowing, we will be at par with the rest,” Ongwae added.

Ongwae has been Morans standout performer but in the absence of Preston Bungei and Joel Awich who were instrumental in Morans beating Angola to qualify for the Afrobasket, debutant Albert Odero has stepped up to emerge as the team's second leading scorer, behind Ongwae with 12.7 points and 5.3 rebounds. 

Bungei has taken to social media to explain his absence in Kigali while Awich is said to have been held up by negotiations for a deal with a new club in France and could not make the trip to Kigali. 

"(sic) What’s up everyone! I know I’ve been tagged quite a few times with people asking why I’m not with the Morans at Afrobasket. Just wanted to quickly share that due to my visa status I had to stay in Australia and wasn’t able to travel to Kigali at this point in time. Lord willingly, I hope to rejoin the team for World Cup qualifiers. With that being said, let’s all rally behind and support the players that are there and representing Kenya on the biggest stage in Africa. These guys have worked so hard the past few years to make Kenyan basketball relevant again, so let’s not forget that and give them all the support we can! God bless and #MORANSTOTHEWORLD," Bungei wrote. 

Additional reporting by FIBA and Stephen Ochieng