Guinea topped host Cape Verde 50-48 in a closely fought matchup in the latter’s capital, Praia in the first of two qualifiers. The second game takes place later tonight at the same venue.
The winner over two legs qualifies to the biannual continental championship that has five nations that have already booked their spots including defending champions Nigeria.
Guinea had to recover from a 24-27 first half deficit and another three point deficit (36-39) at the end of the third quarter to clinch the win.
However, Guinea beat the host nation 14-9 in the final quarter to seal the win ahead of tonight’s important matchup.
University of Connecticut Guard Batouly Camara has the highest profile on the Guinean team and proved her worth by scoring 20 points.
12 of her point tally came from three point range and teammate Aicha Mara added 11 points. Ornela Livramento and Jade Leitao scored 13 and 11 points for Cape Verde.
By Yaw Adjei-Mintah
@YawMintYM on Twitter
