Non-Asian FIBA Games Megathread (NTs. Clubs, Etc)

[Dotch]

South Sudan eliminated Kenya 60-58

Kenya is one of the shortest teams in this tourney but South Sudan, long and tall, cannot put them away easily. Kenya battled from 20 points down at the half, to cut the deficit to 60-58 with about 2 and half minutes or so. Both teams went cold from thereon. Kenya has at least 4 possessions to tie or get the lead in the final 2 minutes. But they either missed or turned the ball over. Kenya even has the last possession but the last second 3 point attempt just won't drop.


Observations:
-Kenya is far from being the most talented squad but they offset that with their defense and hustle points. Credit head coach Liz Mills.
-Both teams don't shoot well from the outside, and from the stripe. The shooting mechanics of the big guys are, well, ugly. The most skilled players, like the Asians, are the guards and the smaller guys.

[reamily]

South Sudan eliminated Kenya 60-58

Kenya is one of the shortest teams in this tourney but South Sudan, long and tall, cannot put them away easily. Kenya battled from 20 points down at the half, to cut the deficit to 60-58 with about 2 and half minutes or so. Both teams went cold from thereon. Kenya has at least 4 possessions to tie or get the lead in the final 2 minutes. But they either missed or turned the ball over. Kenya even has the last possession but the last second 3 point attempt just won't drop.


Observations:
-Kenya is far from being the most talented squad but they offset that with their defense and hustle points. Credit head coach Liz Mills.
-Both teams don't shoot well from the outside, and from the stripe. The shooting mechanics of the big guys are, well, ugly. The most skilled players, like the Asians, are the guards and the smaller guys.

Agree on this but they dont make much impact like their bigs, rwanda for instance, and evidently Nigeria and Angola(yup they will rely to Morais to create offense for them).. Cabo Verde has a 35 year old pg, that shows you how limited the guard pool is for african teams

[Dotch]

Agree on this but they dont make much impact like their bigs, rwanda for instance, and evidently Nigeria and Angola(yup they will rely to Morais to create offense for them).. Cabo Verde has a 35 year old pg, that shows you how limited the guard pool is for african teams

Morais almost beat Senegal all by himself sa QF. Kaso kinapos. Down 12 in the 4th, Angola tied the game at 74 with 50 secs. but Morais' teardrop (vs 3 defenders) didint go in. Senegal eliminated Angola 79-74.

Few bullet points:

-Morais WAS an NBA level talent. Sayang I didnt see him in his prime. ( he's 35 y.o.) He came off the bench and scored a bunch ( at one point he has 4 3-pointers in a row)

- As usual, poker faced pa rin si Gorgui Dieng , i wonder if he stills remember RDO? They banged heads in WC last 2014. Sometimes he got caught in switches guarding Morias in the perimeter, but he showed why he plays in the NBA. He didnt get rattled. and played him straight up. Then susundot sa huli to wreck Morais' timing.

-NBA prohibits players from playing in FIBA if games are held 60 days before opening day. NBA starts Oct 19. So it is safe to say none of the players left in the SF round is NBA bound opening day, Gorgui Dieng included.

- The game was different in my perspective when the teams came from places with strong basketball culture. Angola was like Chot's Gilas, kinukuha sa puso at diskarte. Senegal too . Players on both sides use smarts more than physical skills, compared to other teams like Uganda and South Sudan, where they rely more on their raw talent.

-Senegal is scary good. I wonder if this is their A-Team. The average height alone would scare lots of teams, at 6'8. Dieng is their anchor on both sides of the floor, but they have other talents, like Ibrahim Faye (24 y.o.) who at 6'10 plays both forward positions and Pierra Henry, their starting 2 guard

QF is done:

Cape Verde beats Uganda 79 -71
Ivory Coast beats Guinae 98-50
Tunisia beats South Sudan 80-65


SF pairings:

Tunisia vs Cape Verde
Senegal vs Ivory Coast

[reamily]

-Senegal is scary good. I wonder if this is their A-Team. The average height alone would scare lots of teams, at 6'8. Dieng is their anchor on both sides of the floor, but they have other talents, like Ibrahim Faye (24 y.o.) who at 6'10 plays both forward positions and Pierra Henry, their starting 2 guard

Always been, but somehow, suki sila ng Asian teams, this team were out of FIBA OQT because of covid protocols, who knows what might have happened if they joined..happy that they were able to redeem themselves this afrobasket..

[Dotch]

So no Tunisia vs Senegal in the finals of the AfroBasket 2021.

Ivory Coast somehow managed to beat Senegal in the SF. A rare white player, Matt Costello, out rebounded and out muscled Senegal's big, athletic bigmen. Gorgui Dieng and Ibrahim Faye were sensational for Senegal but its Castello who has the more impact in the game. The normally chill emotionless Dieng lost his cool and hacked Costello in the final seconds and was thrown out. Lol.

American born Matt Costello, 6'10 naturalized player leads the tournament in +/- , and is the most efficient player. Ivory Coast needs to naturalized a player while one of their own was "mined" by an Asian team . Lol.

Meanwhile defending champion Tunisia expectedly beats Cape Verde 75-65 to reach the finals

[Dotch]

Tunisia won 78-75... Kings of Africa back to back.. But i still hope Nigeria should serious this Afrobasket next time to give Tunisia run for their money...

Tunisia just scored 13 points in the 4th quarter, but held on to win 78 - 75.
- in the last minute, ref did not call a foul on MEJRI, Costello clearly have a sure interception but Mejri climb over his back to deny him. He got the ball and was fouled going to the basket.
- Ivorian guard Diabate made a 3 plus foul, for a 4 point play, to cut the lead to 3
- Tunisia turned the ball over, giving Ivory Coast 10 secs to tie the game.
- Costello set a pick and get the ball on the 3 point area, but cannot get a good look, he passed to the corner but Roll intercepted. Game over


They denied Ivory Coast in the last possession. I think that's the story of the whole tournament. Tunisia doing it on defense and simple smart basketball.

Few Bullet Points:

- Their starting guards are 6'1 Obada and 6'6 American born Michael Roll. They are far to be the most imposing backourt. Obada is 6'1 and rail-thin, and 34 y.o old Michael Roll looks like your 70s porn star with his porn-stache.. But Obada's first step and drive to the basketball always wrecks his defenders' timing. Roll is 3 and D guy (also with 9 assists). and it showed in the last possession.

- Their starting frontcourt is 6'9 Radhouane SLIMANE, 6'8 Makram BEN ROMDHANE and 7'1 Salah MEJRI. They are 41, 32 and 35 respectively. They always have at least 2 of these players playing in the game. And somehow these 3 veterans are always in sync.. They neutralized their opponents with their wits and smarts. Ivorian Center Matt Costello, one of the tournament leaders in most categories, scored his 9th point only in the 4th Quarter.

- 6'9 SLIMANE and 6'8 ROMDHANE will body up their defenders , posting hem up, then if shot is not there, they will kick out to 7'1 Mehji for the 3.

- Most of the game, Tunisia rotated only 8 players. The other guard in the rotation is 34 y.o El Mabrouk, for instant offense. The other big in the rotation is 6'8 Ghyaza also 34,. He picks where the starting 3 left off.

- Tunisia is old. Ave age is 30, but the average age of their starting 5 is 34. But i think they benefitted from playing together for the longest time. That's why they are the champions.

[Dotch]

Senegal salvaged bronze with a win vs Cape Verde 86 - 73



Mythical Team

Omar Abada (TUN)
Makram Ben Romdhane (TUN)
Matt Costello (CIV)
Gorgui Dieng (SEN) - Most points scored
Edy Tavarez ( CV) - Most number of rebounds (dude is 7'3)

MVP - Makram Ben Romdhane (TUN)

[reamily]

Tunisia just scored 13 points in the 4th quarter, but held on to win 78 - 75.
- in the last minute, ref did not call a foul on MEJRI, Costello clearly have a sure interception but Mejri climb over his back to deny him. He got the ball and was fouled going to the basket.
- Ivorian guard Diabate made a 3 plus foul, for a 4 point play, to cut the lead to 3
- Tunisia turned the ball over, giving Ivory Coast 10 secs to tie the game.
- Costello set a pick and get the ball on the 3 point area, but cannot get a good look, he passed to the corner but Roll intercepted. Game over


They denied Ivory Coast in the last possession. I think that's the story of the whole tournament. Tunisia doing it on defense and simple smart basketball.

Few Bullet Points:

- Their starting guards are 6'1 Obada and 6'6 American born Michael Roll. They are far to be the most imposing backourt. Obada is 6'1 and rail-thin, and 34 y.o old Michael Roll looks like your 70s porn star with his porn-stache.. But Obada's first step and drive to the basketball always wrecks his defenders' timing. Roll is 3 and D guy (also with 9 assists). and it showed in the last possession.

- Their starting frontcourt is 6'9 Radhouane SLIMANE, 6'8 Makram BEN ROMDHANE and 7'1 Salah MEJRI. They are 41, 32 and 35 respectively. They always have at least 2 of these players playing in the game. And somehow these 3 veterans are always in sync.. They neutralized their opponents with their wits and smarts. Ivorian Center Matt Costello, one of the tournament leaders in most categories, scored his 9th point only in the 4th Quarter.

- 6'9 SLIMANE and 6'8 ROMDHANE will body up their defenders , posting hem up, then if shot is not there, they will kick out to 7'1 Mehji for the 3.

- Most of the game, Tunisia rotated only 8 players. The other guard in the rotation is 34 y.o El Mabrouk, for instant offense. The other big in the rotation is 6'8 Ghyaza also 34,. He picks where the starting 3 left off.

- Tunisia is old. Ave age is 30, but the average age of their starting 5 is 34. But i think they benefitted from playing together for the longest time. That's why they are the champions.

Really bad that michael roll become a basketball player at a wrong time.. he might be team mates with ali peek and made a great duo..

[reamily]

Senegal salvaged bronze with a win vs Cape Verde 86 - 73



Mythical Team

Omar Abada (TUN)
Makram Ben Romdhane (TUN)
Matt Costello (CIV)
Gorgui Dieng (SEN) - Most points scored
Edy Tavarez ( CV) - Most number of rebounds (dude is 7'3)

MVP - Makram Ben Romdhane (TUN)

At least Gilas got a yaste of abada and their guard play too bad we didnt get their front court..

I still believe Iran and Lebanon are at par or better than tunisia.. lebanon always beat the best tunisian club team in all mena tournaments problema once Mejri comes and Tunisia eh open minded din sila.. they hire michael roll to improve the team..

Mabrouk and rest of guard bench mob of tunisia is underrated, they held the forth in king abdullah cup.. they even force us to overtime ( Abada or el ambrouk palyed sparingly that game) evident yun first step abikities of their guards) that even SJ and thirdy had difficult time stopping, good thing anje was there to help always. During that time and upon seeing nigeria team c alam ko nang angat pa rin ang tunisia this tournament..

[reamily]

I think Tunisia w/ Meijri is better than most of Asian teams.. w/ Meijri, they can beat Korea easily (They are allergic against dominant big man).. They are also on par with China and maybe little difference against Japan w/ NBA players.. They already beat Iran in last 2019 WC and i don't see Lebanon will win over Tunisia.. With Tunisia winning Afrobasket again.. Expecting that they will climb up into the rankings, currently they are no.30... Korea and China will go down again 1 place and back to the previous places last time after this latest triumph by Tunisia...

Pero ikaw na nagsabi, you want to battle Tunisia as you know Gilas can beat them..

[reamily]

Yeah.. In 2023, Our Gilas boys will be much better than today.. Kai will be better in 2023 than today, Ramos, Baltazar, Tamayo will be better in 2023, Edu will be healthy by 2023 and a huge addition.. And if Clarkson gets local status in 2023, We can put Kouame and JC in the line up on the same time.. I know you will agree in 2023, We can beat Tunisia once they will cross paths again.. With JC, improve versions of Kai, Ramos, etc... and coaching brillance of Tab, I'm 100% sure we will beat them.. But today, Tunisia is better than Gilas.. It just we have a huge upside and potential than them..

Maybe yes we can beat Tunisia but not with the set of players who were playing major minutes in abdullah cup.. match sila ng tunisia.. team b. ( Watch afrobasket and abdullah cup that we accept the truth) dwight ramos as hyped he is in ibn is a bench player in 2023 at best..still jordan heading because of personal bias among pinoy fans will not be a shoo in 2023 despite being a capable shooter and abetter point gaurd than ramos. anj will be there to help kai sotto and hopefully edu up front and a blessing from fiba from one of our eligibles is a big help..

Maraming pwedeng baguhin sa lineup pa..yun dapat nadedevelop nababangko yun iba pwede mapakinabangan ayun nasa ibang mga team na..Let Ateneo be the de facto team b of gilas l
(Long term team).. they will get the same training and benefits of gilas.. Have gilas recruit more young players.. dont care about 2023.. if we improve by 2024 so be it.. if 2022 present guys can work magic with tab pala with some of our young bigs with kai and aj the better especially if we have an nba level.scorer in our wings come asiad ( unless china made a way to make him ineligible)..

The truth is the rayray kiefer and pba stars are the jow.. and only kai sotto anj and edu are capable reinforcements of pba team BUT...the team we created now should still be together and particpate on competitions pba players arent capable of..

[Dotch]

Yeah.. In 2023, Our Gilas boys will be much better than today.. Kai will be better in 2023 than today, Ramos, Baltazar, Tamayo will be better in 2023, Edu will be healthy by 2023 and a huge addition.. And if Clarkson gets local status in 2023, We can put Kouame and JC in the line up on the same time.. I know you will agree in 2023, We can beat Tunisia once they will cross paths again.. With JC, improve versions of Kai, Ramos, etc... and coaching brillance of Tab, I'm 100% sure we will beat them.. But today, Tunisia is better than Gilas.. It just we have a huge upside and potential than them..

Well, Tunisia's starting frontline is up there in age, their best player 6'8 ROMDHANE is 32.. contemporary ito ni JMF. While 7'1 Salah MEJRI is around Japheth's age at 34-35. Si 6 '9 SLIMANE ang oldest at 41. So yeah, in 2 years' time, we can only hope that these guys regress physically.

It's amusing that in their game, a 34 y.o 6'8 Ghyaza subs in for one of their senior bigs...or El Mabrouk, also 34 subs in to relieve 29 y.o Michael Roll.. I dont think they played their younger guys significantly in the Finals.

But we compare the present Gilas team to them man for man, we forget that this Tunisia team works well as unit, and yes, like Iran, they have been together for so long.

[ja.he]

i am recommending to the Tongan National Team Mo Tautuaa to be part of their pool for the FIBA-Polynesia Cup next year. they are now trying to assemble a team for that tournament.

they already have 6'8 Center Maika Ostling and 6'6 Guard Marcus Alipate. Having 6'6 Tautuaa in their team will make Tonga arguably the best frontline in Polynesia.

Polynesia Cup serves as the qualifier for the Pacific Games next year and , possibly, for the FIBA-Asia 2025 plus the qualifiers for the 2027 FIBA World Cup.

[ja.he]

Will SMC allow him? that's the question... hehehehhehehehehe....

If the Polynesian Cup is not in conflict with the PBA sched, I think they will allow him. Besides, it is not Gilas that is requesting but Tonga. You know SMC - magaling sa iba pero sa kapwa hindi. Hehe

[ja.he]

I don't think it will happen.. beisdes, SMB is always finals contender.. With limited off season in the PBA, Mo can't leave SMB too long because the separation between conference is only 2-3 weeks only...

But with this pandemic? PBA is taking a long break because IATF orders them to do so. Therefore, the possibility is there.