Mixed fortunes for Uganda’s juniors in Tunisia

Silverbacks: Uganda 85 Morocco 80

Gazelles: Uganda 25 Egypt 78

The Junior Silverbacks and Junior Gazelles showcased their potential at the ongoing FIBA U16 African Championships in Monastir, Tunisia.

Despite facing formidable opponents, these young basketball players have refused to be disheartened by initial setbacks and fought their way back into contention.

The Junior Silverbacks began their campaign on a challenging note, suffering defeats in their first two encounters against Chad and Egypt.

However, their perseverance and never-give-up attitude came to the fore during their match against Morocco on Monday evening.

With a spirited 85-80 performance, the Junior Silverbacks emerged victorious, reigniting their confidence and proving their ability to bounce back from adversity.

Similarly, the Junior Gazelles experienced a mixed campaign thus far. While they achieved a thrilling victory over Guinea in their second game, they encountered defeat against Egypt on Monday evening.

The Emadeldin Mahmoud-coached North Africans had a commanding start to the clash, going 25-7 ahead in the first quarter to spell trouble for their East African counterparts who seemed not to have a response for free-scoring Egypt.

The Junior Silverbacks have had a tough time in Tunisia. Courtesy Photo

Egypt went on a 15-2 run in the opening five minutes of the clash, forcing Uganda into a timeout that did little to change their predicament.

The second period was no different as Egypt scored 23 points while holding Uganda to just 6 with a dominant show on the paint as all their three-shot attempts missed the target. That, however, did not stop them from taking a 35-point advantage to the half-time break.

Modesta Anyango opened the scoring in the third stanza with a three-point shot that took Uganda’s tally to 16, adding a 17th almost three minutes later from the free-throw line, after a back-and-forth of turnovers with nothing to show for either side

The taps continued to dry and five minutes into the third quarter, the scores read 52-17, Egypt having made two jump shots from Joudy Elbaz and Injy Amr Elghayesh.

Both sides added a couple more points to close the quarter on a 14-8 run in favour of the eventual winners while the final period ended 16-4 in their favour as well for the massive victory.

Haya Alhalawany led the scoring with 13 as Injy Amr added 11 to the tally. Khadiga Abouelghait had a huge game scoring 10 points and 12 rebounds in 19:43 minutes for the only double-double in the match.

The Junior Gazelles lie third with four points after losing to Egypt while the Junior Silverbacks are bottom Group B with four points.

The girls will face off against Angola in the quarter-finals on Wednesday at 5:30 PM.