Sporting Clube de Luanda women’s basketball head coach, Angela Cardoso, says the introduction of the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) Women’s Basketball League Africa in the southern African region will help grow the sport and enhance competition across the continent.
Cardoso’s side, Sporting Clube de Luanda, were crowned champions of the Fiba Women’s Basketball League Africa Zone 6, group E qualifiers, held in Windhoek from 7 to 9 November.
The Angolan club will now advance to the main Women’s Basketball League Africa tournament, scheduled to take place in Cairo, Egypt, in December.
Speaking after their victory over Brave Hearts of Malawi on Saturday, Cardoso said such competitions are crucial, particularly for developing basketball nations such as Namibia and Malawi.
“These types of tournaments are very important, especially for countries that are just starting out in basketball. It allows them to experience a different level of play by competing against well-established teams,” she said.
Cardoso added that her dream is to see all these teams grow stronger so that this region of Africa becomes much more competitive in the sport.
Brave Hearts team manager Daudi Hussein echoes Cardoso’s sentiments, saying participation in the regional tournament is vital for the growth of women’s basketball, though more work needs to be done to increase involvement.
“We were supposed to have more teams, but only three showed up. That shows there’s still work to be done to attract more participation,” Hussein says.
Hussein adds that each time they partake in these championships, even if they win or lose, they learn something valuable and return home determined to improve.
The Fiba Women’s Basketball League Africa Zone 6, group E qualifiers featured three teams, Unam Phoenix (Namibia), Brave Hearts BCC (Malawi) and Sporting Clube de Luanda (Angola), who battled for top honours at the Deutsche Höhere Privatschule indoor court in Windhoek.
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