Ahmed KHALAF , Coach Branislav and  Esam TAMER (Egypt)
13/08/2015
David Hein's Eye on the Future
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U19 duo guide Egypt back to U17 Worlds as Africa champions

REGENSBURG (David Hein's Eye on the Future) - Ahmed Khalaf had one goal going into the 2015 FIBA Africa U16 Championship - helping Egypt reach the Final and qualify for the 2016 FIBA U17 World Championship.

And it ended as mission accomplished for Egypt as the northern Africans beat hosts Mali 64-63 in the U16 Final for their third African title in four editions. Khalaf collected 16 points, 16 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 steals in the title game and earned tournament MVP honours.

Khalaf was by far the most experienced player on the court in Bamako as the center played in his third tournament for Egypt - following the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship and the 2015 FIBA U19 World Championship.

The 16-year-old broke onto the international scene at last year's U17 Worlds in Dubai and showed earlier this summer at the U19 Worlds that he can hold his own against players older than him - averaging 8.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.9 blocks. 

And Khalaf dominated the field in Mali by averaging 14.8 points, 12.2 rebounds and 3.5 blocks.

He definitely used the experience from the U19 Worlds to lead the way for Egypt. But joining him on the All-Star Five was Esam Mostafa, who also played at the U19 World Championship in Crete despite being a 1999-born player just like Khalaf and playing two years younger than the rest of the competition. 

Mostafa averaged 1.5 points and 4.0 rebounds at the U19 Worlds, but teamed up with Khalaf to give the Egyptians a strong front court. Mostafa collected three double-doubles at the FIBA Africa U16s, averaging 10.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.8 blocks a game. 

Having the likes of Khalaf and Mostafa was certainly a luxury for Egyptian head coach Branislav Jemc and something that none of the other teams in Mali could match. And that led the country to its fourth straight FIBA Africa U16 Final, winning the title for the third time following successes in 2009 and 2011

Egypt were knocked off in the 2013 Final by Angola, but they reached all three previous editions of the U17 Worlds. 

A spot in the 2016 FIBA U17 World Championship nearly didn't happen as Tunisia gave Egypt a fight in the Quarter-Finals. The Tunisians led by nine points in the first quarter and were still up by seven in the third quarter before Egypt pulled away in the fourth to win 93-85

Egypt blasted past Angola 74-51 in the Semi-Finals to reach their minimum goal of the Final - and guaranteeing their spot at the U17 Worlds. 

Tournaments hosts Mali got little resistance from Algeria in their Semi-Final, winning 65-39 to reach their second Africa U16 title game. The victory secured Mali its first berth in the U17 World Championship. They reached the 2009 U16 Africa Final, but only the champions - Egypt - reached the inaugural FIBA U17 World Championship which then featured 12 teams

This will be only the second time that Mali will play a global men's tournament following their appearance at the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championship in Serbia.

Despite beating Egypt 77-75 in First Round play, Mali were unable to defeat Egypt again in the Final.

Egypt have become the powers in African youth basketball. In addition to their strong run at the U16 level, they have collected the title in three of the last four biennial FIBA Africa U18 Championships, which means they have represented the continent in three of the last four U19 World Championships. 

That wealth of experience is a huge advantage at the African level and it clearly showed as Khalaf and Mostafa were two of the top players at the U16 Africa tournament - thanks to them playing against top level competition at the U19 Worlds just a few weeks earlier.

David Hein

FIBA 

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David Hein

David Hein

Walk into the media tribune of any major basketball event and there's a good chance you will come across David Hein. Having covered dozens of FIBA events, including numerous women's and youth events, there are few players Dave doesn't know about, and few players who don't know him. His sporting curiosity means he is always looking to unearth something new and a little bit special. David Hein's Eye on the Future is a weekly column digging out the freshest basketball talent worldwide and assessing what the basketball landscape will look like a couple of years down the line.