Basketball Lions secure maiden FIBA AfroCan qualification.

The Basketball Lions qualified for the event on Saturday March 25, after emerging winners of the Central African zonal qualifying series for the 2023 AfroCan.

The competition was held at the Multipurpose Sports Complex in Yaounde.

The team captained by ace star, Arnold Kome, achieved the feat after winning all four of their matches in the five-nation championship.

The boys of coach Francois Enyegue crowned the tournament with a walk over Equatorial Guinea. The dispatched their Central African neigbours by 102-38points in their final game on Saturday March 25.

Etienne Tametong and his Cameroonian teammate, James Nekthy came out as joint top scorers after contributing 25points in the Cameroon win.

The win on Saturday came after the Basketball Lions outplayed Chad 82-74 points on Friday during their third game of the series.

That win added up to early sweeping wins against the Central African Republic and Gabon.   

On the official final classification, Cameroon finished atop of the final ranking with 8points.

Cameroon finished ahead of Gabon that occupied the second position after losing just one match in the qualifying competition.

The Central African Republic, Chad and Equatorial Guinea ranked 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th  respectively at the end of the tournament.

Cameroon will make its maiden appearance at the Afrocan this year after missing out on the inaugural edition in 2019.

Chad had represented the Centra African sub region when the first edition of the tournament took place.

The 2023 FIBA AfroCan will be Cameroon’s first major competition since the 2021 FIBA Afrobasket in Rwanda where the Basketball Lions finished last in Group D behind Senegal, South Sudan and Uganda. 

The Afrocan is a new competition, introduced by the world basketball governing body, FIBA to develop the game on the African continent.

The tournament holds after four years and is uniquely meant for players playing professional basketball on the African continent.

The final phase of the 2023 AfroCan will be held in Angola in July this year.

Seven countries, including host Angola, Mozambique, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Morocco, Mali and Cameroon have so far secured qualification tickets.

A total of twelve teams from the four major regional blocks of the African continent will be featuring in the competition.