Under the guidance of Angolan Emanuel Trovoada who led Cape Verde to the podium in 2007, the "Blue Sharks" are looking to improve on their show from Kigali four years ago and break a 18-year jinx. The Islanders started the campaign with a victory after a DR Congo scare.
Last Updated on
August 14, 2025
Cape Verde had a nightmare second quarter in their AfroBasket 2025 opener against DR Congo but bounced back with a dominant second-half display to secure a thrilling 75-66 victory. It was sweet revenge for the Islanders, who had fallen 70-66 to a youthful Congolese side in their first-ever meeting back in 2021 in Kigali. That year, Cape Verde rebounded to finish fourth, while DR Congo settled for 13th.
With veteran Angolan coach Emanuel Trovoada—who guided the "Blue Sharks" to their only podium finish in 2007—at the helm, Cape Verde exploded out of the gates. Ivan Almeida set the tone early, and a quick seven-point burst pushed the score to 15-8. Will Tavares then drained back-to-back threes, helping the Sharks surge ahead 20-8. But Claude Christian Lutete IV had other ideas, putting on a solo show in the final minutes of the quarter to cut the gap to just four at 20-16.
The start of the second quarter was uneventful—until it wasn’t. Fans were caught off guard as DR Congo flipped the script with a ferocious run. After Joel Almeida briefly extended Cape Verde's lead to 23-16 from the line, Isaac Ngoy Mushila, Jordan Sakho, and Garmine Kande Kieli spearheaded a stunning 14-0 blitz that left the Islanders rattled and trailing 28-25. Cape Verde could only muster one more basket in the quarter, ultimately being outscored 18-5 as they went into halftime down by nine.
"Congo DR were a tough team but we had a little more motivation with what is happening at home with the storm. This win was for those families," Will Tavares said after the win.
The Congolese continued their momentum in the third, stretching their lead to 16 points (46-30) but coach Trovoada reintroduced defensive veteran Edy Tavares with 5:20 to play in the third and the tide started to change as he went in a 5-0 run for 48-38.
Cape Verde's shooting from range proved a game changer as they got back-to-back threes to make it a two-point match at 48-46. The Almeida brothers were not satisfied yet as they rose for three more, Joel hitting two in the last 90 seconds of the quarter to lead 55-50 heading to the final quarter. Congo fought back but their failure to stop Cape Verde from range saw the final stanza end 20-16 for the nine-point loss.
"I tell the guys not to look a the score but to keep chipping little by little. As the shots started to drop, the confidence was back so was our energy on defense and eventually we got our run and the victory," Tavares explained further.
Edy's double-double on 14 points and a huge 19 rebounds (12 on defense) in just over 29 minutes, coupled with Will's 17 points, including a 4-for-6 shooting from deep led the Blue Sharks to this victory. The side shot 12-for-31 from range, making up for their performance on the paint where they were outscored 40-20.
"We were not hitting shots in the second half and they had a good run in the second half, just like we did in the opening half, but they managed to discard pace for this victory," Congo DR's Lutete IV offered after the match.
Michel Perrin, Congo DR's coach says the team executed well for 25 minutes but dropped the ball in the last 15, allowing Cape Verde to rally for victory
The two sides will have a day of rest, one that will see Congo DR look to regroup ahead of their clash with Rwanda on Friday, 15 August. Meanwhile, Cape Verde, keen to keep their winning streak going, will face a Cote d'Ivoire side that also won their opening match 78-70 against Rwanda.
[Photography Courtesy of FIBA]
