Gazelles miss out on Afrobasket ticket after defeat to Egypt
David GOMBE
Uganda’s Women’s National basketball team, the Gazelles have failed to qualify for the 2023 FIBA Women Afrobasket after losing to Egypt in a Zone V Championship Final on Sunday evening at Lugogo.
The Gazelles only needed a win to book their ticket to the Afrobasket in Kigali but lost 74-65.
Uganda led the second and third quarters but failed to capitalize on the momentum as they fell short infront of the home fans.
When the two sides met on Wednesday, Uganda beat Egypt by one point (86-85).
In the final on Sunday, Raneem Elgedawy managed 19 points and 12 rebounds, Radwa Salem added 16 with Soraya Deghady contributing 11 more points for Egypt.
Brenda Ekone scored 17 of her 25 points in the first two quarters for the Gazelles, Jannon Otto garnered 14 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists but this was not enough to overcome the Egyptians.
Meanwhile, Kenya beat South Sudan 64-30 to finish third in the Zone V Championship tournament.
Egypt progress to the FIBA Women Afrobasket due in Rwanda for the 14th time in their history. The continental Showpiece will be held from July to August this year. The Egyptians have won the Afrobasket twice in 1966 and 1968 and have twice finished as runners up in 1970 and 1977.
For Uganda the wait continues since 2015 when they prevailed to the final tournament since their debut at the 1997 edition in Kenya.