South Sudan women's basketball team. (Photo: SSBF).

South Sudan’s Women Basketball Team defeated Kenya 86-69 in the FIBA Women’s Afro Basket Zone 5 qualifiers on Tuesday, in their second victory in the tournament in two years.

The win was a significant milestone for Bright Starlets and the first against Kenya, who won their last three encounters.

This is the third participation for South Sudan in the qualifiers. Their first-ever win came against Rwanda in the 2023 qualifiers with a 54-40 victory.

Delicia Washington led the charge for coach Alberto Antuna’s squad, scoring a game-high 26 points along with seven assists and six rebounds. Captain Adut Bulgak, a former WNBA player, and Nyamuoch Teny added 14 points each.

For Kenya, Victoria Reynolds (19 points) and Natalie Mwangale (15 points) were the top scorers. However, South Sudan’s bench depth made a key difference, contributing 23 points compared to Kenya’s 3.

At the free-throw line, South Sudan converted 28 out of 33 attempts, while Kenya struggled, missing 12 of their 23 free throws.

South Sudan will face Uganda in their second game and then Egypt in their third match later on Wednesday at the Hassan Moustafa Sports Hall in Cairo.

The FIBA Women’s Afro Basket 2025 Zone 5 Pre-Qualifiers, which started on February 3, 2025, will run until February 8, 2025, at the Hassan Mostafa Arena in Giza, Egypt.

Zone 5 Participating teams including six nations Egypt the host, Kenya, Burundi, Tanzania, South Sudan, and Uganda. These teams are competing for a coveted spot in the FIBA Women’s Afro Basket 2025, which will be held in Côte d’Ivoire.