Ferroviaro Maputo ride off with a narrow win against REG

The Group C matchup between Ferroviaro and REG got off to an electric start for the women from Mozambique when they had 3 straight buckets to start the game with Ornila Mulhui chipping in 4 quick points. This lead was quickly cut to half with a 3-point shot from Victoria Reynolds after a good connection with Destiney Philoxy. Philoxy took it upon herself to give REG the lead at 7-6 when her 3-point shot found the bottom of the net. The two teams traded buckets until the score was 12-11 in Ferroviaro's favour. Then, the Mozambican champions pulled away and went on a 6-0 run to take the score up to 18-11 before two free-throw conversions from Aminata Ly closed the quarter at 18-13 in favor of Ferroviaro Maputo.

The second quarter started off with a Carla Covane assist to find Destiny Pitts who opened the second quarter scoring with a 3-point shot to extend the Mozambican lead. However, REG had a dormant assassin in Inès Nezerwa who erupted for 12 points in the second quarter after scoring none in the first. She converted 4 straight free-throws to cut the deficit to just two possessions. She became a nightmare for Maputo to handle in the paint as she continued to cause issues for them. However, Maputo managed to find some momentum and went on a 6-0 run to extend the lead to double digit at 27-17. Nevertheless, REG still managed to find ways to chip away at the deficit with meaningful contributions from Inès Nezerwa and Destiney Philoxy. With wind in the sails of Maputo and the score at 29-25, the two teams began to trade baskets. Neither team was able to find their range from beyond the arc with the fate of the game hinged on spectacular actions in the paint or in transition. With little to separate the two teams in the second quarter, they went into the half with the score at 38-31 in favor of Ferroviaro.

While fans hoped the third quarter could prove decisive, there was little or no drama. REG opened the scoring with Aminata Ly and a 3-point shot by Victoria Reynolds after Kayla Pointer found her on the 3-point line for a dagger, but Ferroviaro went on a run right away with a 3-point shot from Anabela Cossa to extend their lead to 47-36. REG managed to rally behind Victoria Reynolds for another 3-point shot.

Inès Nezerwa continued with her impressive form on the free-throw line to cut the deficit by 6 with a little over a minute and a half left in the quarter. The end of the quarter was a show of dominance by REG in the paint as their foe could not contain Nezerwa and Tetero who made them pay on the free-throw line. REG began to turn up the intensity and that was costly as Stephanie Chiziane was left wide open for a lay-up and Cecilia Henriques was fouled after an offensive rebound. She converted both free-throws. However, the quarter ended the same way it started with Aminata Ly scoring a jump shot. The quarter ended at 54-48 in favor of the Mozambicans.

The fourth quarter began the same as the third did with Aminata Ly scoring. This time it was a lay-up and the followed up with 2 converted free-throws by Inès Nezerwa to make it a two-point game with just under 9 minutes left in the game.

Both sides would trade baskets until Destiny Pitts found the bottom of the net from beyond the arc with a pass from Stephanie Chiziane. The momentum shifted when Rosine Micomyiza for REG had a 4-point play when she was fouled on the shot after Victoria Reynolds passed up the shot. She completed the 4-point play to bring it to within 5. The two teams started to trade baskets but after a few mistakes from Maputo, REG found wind in their sails. Inès Nezerwa got a defensive rebound that led to a jaw-dropping step-back by Destiney Philoxy. The game was at 71-69 in favor of Maputo when Destiney Philoxy split the pair. This was repeated with the score at 72-70. She could have tied the game and that frustration led her to commit a foul on Mozambican veteran, Ingvild Mucauro, who converted both free-throws to extend her team’s lead.

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Destiney Philoxy committed another foul on Stephanie Chiziane who converted two more free-throws to bring the game to 76-70 with a minute to go. Victoria Reynolds stole the ball from Anabela Cossa to find Destiney Philoxy who connected with Inès Nezerwa who converted the fastbreak lay-up. After another tough defensive possession by REG, they missed a 3-point shot and were forced to foul.

Ferroviaro remained calm on the free-throw line with no mistake in the clutch as Silvia Veloso converted both free-throws with 10 seconds left. They had pretty much sealed the game as they were up 78-72. Anabela Cossa fouled Destiney Philoxy with 1 second left and this time, she converted both free-throws to end the game at 78-74 in favor of Ferroviaro Maputo. Aminata Ly of REG ended the game with 13 points and a game high of 17 rebounds while her teammate Inès Nezerwa led all scorers with 18 points but it was not enough as Stephanie Chiziane (12 points), Carla Covane (9 points and 11 rebounds), Anabela Cossa (11 points), Destiny Pitts (10 points), Ingvild Mucauro (10 points) and Silvia Veloso (11 points and 6 rebounds) did just enough to open their team’s account in Dakar with a win.

Silvia Velos had the following to say:

We worked as a team and we worked everyday, that’s why we got this W… we need to work on defense, improve our defense in order to win the next game.

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[Photography / Imagery Courtesy of FIBA]