Mounir Benzagala (ALG) - Egypt v Algeria, Afrobasket 2015, Radès (Tunisia), Classification 5-6, 29 August 2015
RADES (AfroBasket 2015) Mounir Benzegala’s AfroBasket debut couldn’t have been any better as he helped his country finish sixth at AfroBasket 2015.
The Algerians closed their AfroBasket campaign with a 69-63 defeat to Egypt.
But, the 1.80 point guard couldn’t gone unnoticed either.
RADES (AfroBasket 2015) Mounir Benzegala’s AfroBasket debut couldn’t have been any better as he helped his country finish sixth at AfroBasket 2015.
The Algerians closed their AfroBasket campaign with a 69-63 defeat to Egypt.
But, the 1.80 point guard couldn’t gone unnoticed either.
In day 1 of competition, he was on the spotlight after suffering a monumental block from Zimbabwe’s Vitalis Chikoko.
However, what made the 28-year-old really relevant for Algeria was his impactful contribution on floor.
As the team’s primary point guard, the USA-born averaged a team-high 3.8 assists and 7.8 per game to help Algeria improve from continental record from two years ago.
Benzegala sat down with FIBA.com to explain how a team that missed out direct qualification for AfroBasket 2015, but were awarded a wild card invitation, ended up doing so well.
“It was definitely a success in terms of the objectives, which was to finish in the top-8,” he said.
“Now that we’ve played against Senegal and we beat Cameroon [Round of 16 triumph], I feel that guys are gaining some experience and confidence.”
“That was a team effort. We worked very hard. It was probably one of the best games that I have ever played in terms of atmosphere and excitement and the way we finished it,” he noted.
“We are excited because most people didn’t expect us to do as well .
“Maybe in the next two years we come with a totally different mindset and take it to next level.”
Benzegala, who played college basketball for NCAA Division 2 University of Tampa, feels that he could have done a lot better.
He also returns home with the feeling of accomplishment,” he noted.
I was happy with the way our guys responded - Benzegala
“In terms of leadership the most important thing was to be able to communicate with guys, and I’ll try to continue to do that.
Algeria concluded their campaign with a 4-3, and the Benzegala feels they should be better in a couple of years.
As for his performance, the GS Petroliers guard insists there is still something missing: “I just need to work on my mid-range game, and finishing at the basket. These are two of my key goals.”
Despite Algeria’s sixth-place, basketball in the country still faces barriers Benzegala says.
“One of the biggest issues we have [in Algeria] is that we don’t have a lot of competition.
“More than half of the national team is from GSP Petroliers, and the rest are foreign-based.
“It’s tough when you have a disparity in competition.”
However, what made the 28-year-old really relevant for Algeria was his impactful contribution on floor.
As the team’s primary point guard, the USA-born averaged a team-high 3.8 assists and 7.8 per game to help Algeria improve from continental record from two years ago.
Benzegala sat down with FIBA.com to explain how a team that missed out direct qualification for AfroBasket 2015, but were awarded a wild card invitation, ended up doing so well.
“It was definitely a success in terms of the objectives, which was to finish in the top-8,” he said.
“Now that we’ve played against Senegal and we beat Cameroon [Round of 16 triumph], I feel that guys are gaining some experience and confidence.”
“That was a team effort. We worked very hard. It was probably one of the best games that I have ever played in terms of atmosphere and excitement and the way we finished it,” he noted.
“We are excited because most people didn’t expect us to do as well .
“Maybe in the next two years we come with a totally different mindset and take it to next level.”
Benzegala, who played college basketball for NCAA Division 2 University of Tampa, feels that he could have done a lot better.
He also returns home with the feeling of accomplishment,” he noted.
I was happy with the way our guys responded - Benzegala
“In terms of leadership the most important thing was to be able to communicate with guys, and I’ll try to continue to do that.
Algeria concluded their campaign with a 4-3, and the Benzegala feels they should be better in a couple of years.
As for his performance, the GS Petroliers guard insists there is still something missing: “I just need to work on my mid-range game, and finishing at the basket. These are two of my key goals.”
Despite Algeria’s sixth-place, basketball in the country still faces barriers Benzegala says.
“One of the biggest issues we have [in Algeria] is that we don’t have a lot of competition.
“More than half of the national team is from GSP Petroliers, and the rest are foreign-based.
“It’s tough when you have a disparity in competition.”
By: FIBA.com
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