Captain Ligare holds on to Afrobasket hopes as Morans return

Kenya men’s basketball team captain Griffins Ligare believes they will qualify to the Afrobasket Championship after doing just enough to give themselves a chance during the just concluded first round of qualifiers in Kigali, Rwanda.

Morans suffered chastening defeats to Senegal and Angola but bounced back against Mozambique to end the group on third place ahead of the second round where they will need just one win to secure qualification to the 2021 Afrobasket Championships.

“We have a good chance, considering we won one match in the first leg, now it’s for us to start preparing for the second leg,” he said.

On his side, assistant captain Eric Mutoro said they did their best despite challenges they faced.

“We did our best, even though we faced a lot of challenges despite Senegal and Angola being ranked third and fifth in Africa we really played well against them,” Mutoro said.

Kenya overcame the second hurdle in the long-qualification journey to the 2021 Afrobasket Championship after they turned on the style to beat Mozambique 79-62 in their final Group B game at the Kigali Arena on Friday evening.

The victory saw Morans put one foot to the championship as they wait for the second leg of qualifiers set for February next year to know their fate.

Prior to the Friday win Kenya had recorded two defeats on the bounce against Senegal and Angola.

Only the top three teams from the qualification journey after the second leg will qualify for the Afrobasket Championship that will be held in Kigali, Rwanda next year.