Uganda’s Silverbacks suffered an 88-53 defeat to Senegal in their 2025 Afrobasket opener at the Helmarc Arena in Luanda, Angola, but head coach George Galanopoulos and captain Robinson Opong believe the tournament is far from over.
Senegal, bronze medalists in the previous edition, dominated from the start, leading 30-18 after the first quarter and extending the advantage to 44-30 at halftime.
Makhtar Gueye and Jean-Jacques Boissy each scored 16 points, while Gora Camara added 14. Uganda’s Deng John Geu was the game’s top scorer with 17 points, and Jackson Moni chipped in 10.
Galanopoulos admitted the team struggled with turnovers and failed to adapt to Senegal’s pressure, noting that possession losses made the contest difficult to control.
“It was a difficult game, obviously we have a lot to improve on. We turned over the ball a lot, which made us lose possession and it’s difficult to win a game like that,” he said.
The coach also took responsibility for not putting his players in the best position to handle the intensity.
“I didn’t put the team in position to handle the pressure of the game but that’s something we shall improve on as the coaching staff.”
However, Galanopoulos drew parallels to 2021, when Uganda also lost their opener to Senegal but recovered to reach the quarterfinals, insisting that improvement is possible.
“A few years ago we also lost the opening game to Senegal, but we went on to bounce back and go all the way to the quarterfinals. The job is not done, we just need to improve and get better ahead of the next games and we’ll be ready.”
Opong said the Silverbacks didn’t perform well, particularly on the boards, allowing Senegal to exploit transition opportunities.
“We underperformed, obviously it was hard for us to contain them on the glass and when you don’t do that to a team of Senegal’s calibre, you give up a lot of transitions,” Opong explained.
He urged his teammates to improve their rebounding and physicality, adding that the squad has the ability to compete with the remaining opponents.
“It’s up to us to improve that part of the game, and I think we can do that in the coming games because we have what it takes.”
The captain remained optimistic about the group stage ahead. “We are ready to face the next teams. This tournament is like a rollercoaster. We’ve seen this all before, and we know that we’re capable of competing at this level. We are looking forward to bouncing back in the next game.”
Uganda will face Mali on Thursday before closing the Group D fixtures against Egypt on Saturday, aiming to build on their historic sixth-place finish in 2021 and secure a first-ever win over Senegal in future meetings.
