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12 March, 2017
21 May
11 Désiré Arsène Kone (CIV), Cote d'Ivoire v Benin
23/03/2017
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Burkina Faso and Benin storm Abidjan for FIBA AfroBasket 2017 ticket

ABIDJAN (FIBA AfroBasket 2017) - Burkina Faso, Benin and Cote d'Ivoire on Friday will resume their battle for a place in the Final Round of the FIBA AfroBasket 2017.

The second leg of the FIBA Africa Zone 3 qualifier will conclude with one team claiming the sole ticket for FIBA Africa's 16-team flagship event taking place in Congo-Brazzaville this summer (August 19-30).

Hosts Cote d'Ivoire lead the pack with four points thanks to wins over Burkina Faso (71-48) and Benin (69-55), while Benin are second with 3 points following a 69-61 defeat of Burkina Faso, who conceded two losses in as many games.

Coach Olivier Tea of Cote d'Ivoire is no doubt a confident man. But despite the home court advantage, he told FIBA.com that his men will give every game the attention it deserves.

"It's true we have won two games out of two but that is not the end of the story yet," Tea explained. "There's still two games in Abidjan and for us, it will start afresh. We want to be in Congo-Brazzaville and that can’t happen if we relax because we already have two games in hand. Despite our wins, Benin and Burkina Faso are no pushovers."

For Benin Republic's Kafil Eyotayo to help his country make a long-awaited return to the FIBA AfroBasket, the battle is still open. He believes that having played against Cote d'Ivoire, he has a good insight on the team and as such Benin can still spring a surprise.

"There's no reason ruling us out of the qualification fight. A little more effort from all of us as we hit Abidjan can help change the tide in our favour. Cote d'Ivoire is the team to beat and we’ll do our best to get the result," he stated.

For Burkina Faso, they will be playing for pride and attempt to win a game. Team captain, Mamadou Savadogo is, however, optimistic that winning two games in Abidjan is not out of place just for their pride.

The winner at the end of the second leg earns a place for the final round of the FIBA AfroBasket 2017 and joins reigning champions Nigeria, host Congo-Brazzaville, Egypt, Uganda, DR Congo and Mozambique.

FIBA