Spain were just 16 hours off dismantling hosts Germany by 30 points in front of 12,550 fans inside Berlin Arena. Spain were methodical in that first game, scoring 24 points in the first six minutes. Maria Conde<\/a> had 9 of those 24, and Iyana Mart\u00edn<\/a> was close behind with 8. Even with the atmosphere and the stage, Spain ensured the last 34 minutes of the game were garbage time.<\/p>\n The 11:30 a.m. start for Mali and Spain saw fans fill in as the game was going on. After all, cafes in Berlin open at 10 a.m. on Saturdays, much to some people\u2019s disdain. Who wouldn\u2019t be discouraged by the early tip-off? The Mali fans, seated right behind their nation\u2019s bench, balafon<\/a> and all.<\/p>\n Mali controlled the scoreboard through the first quarter, but Spain grappled back by halftime, leading Mali 34-32. Spain has one of the richest basketball histories in the world. Mali is writing its history, and it\u2019s much closer to its first page than its last.<\/p>\n With this massive gap in each team\u2019s intergenerational history, it\u2019s expected that coming out of the half, Spain would retain control of the scoreboard with the momentum they built in the second quarter. What better team to do this against than a young, 15th-ranked Mali team who has never won a group game at a World Cup, right? <\/p>\n This couldn\u2019t have been further from reality. Mali took the lead back in 92 seconds and only let go of it for 18 seconds the rest of the game.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t make a lot of subs,\u201d Mali head coach Oumarou Sidiya told The IX Sports about the second-half approach for Mali. \u201cWe wanted to keep the same players on and stay close with Spain. If we won or lost the game, we wanted to take it to the end of the fourth quarter. Whatever it took to stay close to Spain until the end.\u201d<\/p>\n As it turned out, Mali wasn\u2019t trying to keep it close with Spain; Spain was trying to keep it close with Mali. At some points it wasn\u2019t close. With two minutes to play in the third quarter, Mali was up by 13. Halfway through the last quarter, it was at 16. The closest it would get for the rest of the game was the final margin of 9.<\/p>\n Rep The IX Sports at your next game! <\/p>\n Shop the logo collection or special \u201cWomen\u2019s Sports are Front Page News\u201d collection now on Shopify.<\/p>\n As for his rotation, Sidiya didn\u2019t waver. Sika Kon\u00e9<\/a> played all 20 minutes in the second half, Djeneba N\u2019Diaye played a little over 16, Aminata Sangar\u00e9 had close to 16, Rokia Doumbia had 15 and Alima Demb\u00e9l\u00e9 had 14.<\/p>\n The first two in that list have led the charge for Mali, with Demb\u00e9l\u00e9 as third fiddle. Their consistency in producing for their nation is the stuff of seasoned veterans, though they have just a combined 98 games in the WNBA \u2014 all from the 24-year-old Kon\u00e9.<\/p>\n N\u2019Diaye had 22 points in the prior game against Japan, with Kon\u00e9 at 21. In the win against Spain, they both provided 19. Demb\u00e9l\u00e9 had 14 against Japan and 11 against Spain. Though 11 points doesn\u2019t jump off the page, the fashion in which she was able to ignite the crowd with all four of her buckets went further than the stat sheet.<\/p>\n \u201cAll thanks go to the crowd,\u201d Demb\u00e9l\u00e9 told The IX Sports. \u201cThanks to them I managed to play this way [feeding off the crowd]. Thanks to them, we won our game. They are always there for us, so all thanks go to them.\u201d<\/p>\n It really did feel like a collective effort that spilled into the stands and reverberated back onto the court.<\/p>\n To Demb\u00e9l\u00e9\u2019s credit, however, she was the one making clutch play after clutch play. In the last quarter, she hit a 2-pointer and a 3-pointer, both times extending the Mali lead to 16 and hammering the tentative nail in the coffin for Spain. She also had two assists and a steal in the final frame, making crucial big plays when her nation needed them.<\/p>\n This game was every bit of an all-in effort. Mali were stubborn, mature and professional in the way they demanded the win from themselves. As a reminder, before the tournament began, Kon\u00e9 told The IX Sports:<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to win as many games as we can [to pass through the group phase]. The objective is to deliver that to Mali. Mali has never been there. To do that, we have to take it game by game, and every game is a final for us.\u201d<\/p>\n Now, they have won. And it wasn\u2019t just any win; it was a win against the strongest team in the group. Sure, they lost to Japan, but they\u2019ve now unlocked the ability to advance through the group phase if they beat Germany.<\/p>\n \u201cIt means everything to us,\u201d Kon\u00e9 told media in the mixed zone. \u201cSpain is one of the best teams, so to be able to beat them, it\u2019s just amazing. And \u2026 we have good players too; we just have to believe it and just try to stay with the game plan with what coach told us.\u201d<\/p>\n She then added to that, before she was, rightly, rushed off to join the celebrations:<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, we\u2019re not surprised because we all are professional players. So we just have to continue to believe and believe what coach told us and stay with that.\u201d<\/p>\n Listen now to The IX Sports Podcast and Women\u2019s Sports Daily Doumbia was huge in the win. When her coach relied on her in the second half, she delivered, finishing the game with nine assists. Postgame, she spoke with media alongside N\u2019Diaye, who she happily translated for.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re proud, we\u2019re proud, we\u2019re happy. All of the emotions, all of the emotions,\u201d Doumbia said emphatically. \u201cThis is not the championship; we didn\u2019t win the World Cup, but we got to do something special with a group that\u2019s very special. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve always believed in the group that we have, always believed in the coaches, the players. This is what we thought we could do; we never doubted this. Yesterday, we felt short. But today we came up with a win, and we\u2019re hoping to keep it moving towards that direction.\u201d<\/p>\n N\u2019Diaye had a smile on her face throughout the entire response, and as Doumbia started translating to her, N\u2019Diaye cut her off. Doumbia then relayed the message: \u201cShe\u2019s happy with what I said.\u201d N\u2019Diaye nodded.<\/p>\n Overall, Mali sent a consistent message: play all four quarters with focus and execution.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels good to pull it out because yesterday we were winning three quarters and then we pretty much lost in the fourth,\u201d Doumbia explained. \u201cSo it feels good to keep our lead, to stay together and everybody just on the same page. \u201c<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a great feeling, she continued. \u201cThis is the world stage. Like we said, we came to write history, we came, we had a dream. We still have a dream to go even further than where we are right now. So that\u2019s pretty much all it is.\u201d<\/p>\n Again, with a smile, this response sufficed for N\u2019Diaye. It was 40 minutes and more from Doumbia, providing assists off the court too.<\/p>\n Mali didn\u2019t let anything get lost in translation, with assistant coach, translator and former player Diana Gandega responding to a question before translating it to Sidiya. Cesare Milanti from FIBA said, \u201cIf I\u2019ve done my maths correctly, 16 years ago at the 2010 World Cup Mali lost against Spain by 44 points.\u201d<\/p>\n Gandega chimed in before Milanti could finish his question, saying, \u201cI was a player [on that team].\u201d<\/p>\n Although it was all in fun in the presser, it was actually a perfect way to connect all the dots for Mali\u2019s basketball journey. Gandega is a through line back to the 2010 World Championship, with a 44-point loss to Spain and, technically, a win, even if it was a playoff for 15th place. That game was a 69-67 win against Senegal, where Gandega played 38 minutes. They were at the Olympics in China two years earlier, with an 0-5 record. Gandega was there too.<\/p>\n In 2014 and 2018, they missed out on the newly renamed World Cup. In 2022, they went 0-5. It got even worse when there was an infamous<\/a> in-team brawl between Salimatou Kourouma and Kamite Elisabeth Dabou in the mixed zone after a loss to Serbia. This was a shocking low and a forgettable moment for a proud nation.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve come a long way since then, and today marks a point where they take charge of their history. Returning to Milanti\u2019s question, which was about how far they had come since 2010, Sidiya responded:<\/p>\n \u201cIt starts with the youth teams; under-16s and under-18s. We beat big, big teams in these categories, so it explains why the women today won. It\u2019s the same group from youth, under-16s to now. Most of the women play in big teams in Europe, in big leagues in France and Spain. Now they can all play and bring this together.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of the women in the team play in Spain, so they know their opposition. We had a big, big difference with the way Spain responded to our defense. We were surprised, because we leveled up. So that\u2019s what led to this game.\u201d<\/p>\n Dembele chimed in on this too. \u201cWe just kept working together since under-19s. Just kept working.\u201d<\/p>\n This is Mali\u2019s development happening in real time. That development was on display against Japan too, but winning reframes growth and makes it undeniable in a way that narrow losses can not.<\/p>\n Sidiya was stoically on task in the press conference, looking ahead to the game against Germany.<\/p>\n \u201cWe gotta stay focused, we gotta work on the strengths and weaknesses of Germany,\u201d he told media. \u201cThey lost against Spain, so it\u2019s going to be a big game. And Germany is the host, so it\u2019s tough for opposing teams. So you have to do everything to beat this team.\u201d<\/p>\n Mali\u2019s win came four hours before Germany tipped off against Japan and won in emphatic fashion. This sets up for an epic Monday in Group A, with every team at 1-1 and everything to play for. And Sidiya is right; the atmosphere they will face against Germany is unlike anything they have seen in this tournament, as Berlin has provided their home team with two sellout crowds.<\/p>\n For Germany, it\u2019s actually taken longer than Mali since their nation last saw a win at a World Cup\/Championship, dating all the way back to 1998, the last time they hosted. Current German head coach Olaf Lange was on the staff for Germany back then too, so he has an intimate understanding of what it takes to deliver a win under the conditions these teams will face two sleeps after their historic days.<\/p>\n Mali\u2019s history will continue to evolve, and what happens against Germany will help define it. They have redefined their context and arrived on the world stage. They don\u2019t rely on one person, but there is always a headline talent.<\/p>\n Sika Kon\u00e9 and Djeneba N\u2019Diaye are the top liners, with Alima Demb\u00e9l\u00e9 as the reliable supporting act. Of course, there are contributors throughout the roster, and they can\u2019t win without them, but those are legitimate core pillars the rest of the team can build on.<\/p>\n Sidiya needs to be named in that as well. He has established a system, identity and most importantly, a belief. Mali has always had incredible athletes; then it had incredible basketball players. Now it has an incredible basketball team. No one knows what the future holds for Mali, but a win against Spain makes it feel like the next 16 years might be more fruitful than the last.<\/p>\n The IX Daily: Six different women\u2019s sports in your inbox every week! Japan\u2019s 3-point barrage too much for Mali<\/p>\n![\"Mali](\"https:\/\/www.theixsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/tvfvhdlqiifvo7pqmjxh-1024x683.webp\")
Mali fans celebrate as a balafon player plays his balafon in the background at the FIBA World Cup on September 5, 2026, in Berlin, Germany (Photo credit: fiba.basketball)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/unisex-premium-sweatshirt-black-zoomed-in-69d805eea2e49-1024x1024.webp\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/iepu3d77pzhs4njr955r-1024x683.jpeg\")
Mali fans cheer on their team at the FIBA World Cup on September 5, 2026, in Berlin, Germany (Photo credit: fiba.basketball)<\/p>\n
We are excited to announce the launch of TWO new podcasts for all the women\u2019s sports fans out there looking for a daily dose of women\u2019s sports news and analysis. Stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or anywhere you listen to podcasts, and make sure to subscribe!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.theixsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/plb1dihgr98gwa4aq9rw-1024x683.jpeg\")
Mali players celebrate with their fans at the FIBA World Cup on September 5, 2026, in Berlin, Germany (Photo credit: fiba.basketball)<\/p>\n
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