Basketballghana.com can confirm Mali and Nigeria will compete for the 2021 FIBA Women’s African Nations Basketball Championship (AfroBasket) title with both nations progressing to the final game.
Mali beat Cameroon 52-51 in dramatic fashion a few hours before Nigeria secured a 73-63 win over bitter rival Senegal in the semifinals. (Click highlighted text to watch game highlights)
Star Cameroon player Dulcy Fankam missed one of two free throws late in the game against Mali; the miss proved very costly as her nation missed out on tying the game to force overtime.
Fankam was the only Cameroon player to score in double figures as she recorded 12 points and added 12 rebounds. Mali on the other hand had Kadidia Maiga and N’Diaye Djeneba score 11 and 12 points respectively.
Mali has reached the final despite going into the tournament on the back of a sexual harassment investigation that has had FIBA suspended seven Malian Federation officials.
Nigeria will compete on Sunday for its third African title in a row after having three players score in double figures led by Amy Okwonkwo’s 16 point outing.
Nigeria beat Senegal at the 2019 AfroBasket Final. This year’s final game tips off at 17:00 GMT in Yaounde with Cameroon battling Senegal for third place at 14:00 GMT.
By Yaw Adjei-Mintah
@YawMintYM on Twitter
