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Nigeria’s D’Tigers will look to round off their FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 African Qualifiers Window 3 campaign on a winning note when they face bottom-placed Rwanda today, buoyed by a thrilling victory that ended Guinea’s unbeaten run.
D’Tigers head into the clash with renewed confidence after edging Guinea 80-79 in a dramatic encounter on Friday, a result that improved their record to 3-2 while handing the previously unbeaten Guineans their first defeat of the campaign.
David Fizdale’s revitalised side will also draw confidence from history, having never lost to Rwanda in international competition. Nigeria boast a perfect 5-0 head-to-head record against the East Africans and will be aiming to maintain that dominance in Luanda.
Against Guinea, D’Tigers displayed grit and character to recover from a third-quarter collapse. After leading 46-40 at halftime, Nigeria surrendered the advantage as Guinea fought back to take a 68-62 lead entering the final quarter.
However, the Nigerians responded in style. With Guinea holding a one-point advantage in the closing seconds, Uche Iroegbu drove into the paint before setting up Chimezie Metu for the game-winning basket. Guinea failed to score on their final possession, sealing a memorable one-point victory for Nigeria.
Assistant coach David Vanterpool praised his players’ resilience after the hard-fought win.
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“They were able to fight together, fight through frustration and stand up to a very good Guinea team. Our guys showed tremendous heart, resilience, determination and togetherness to get the win,” Vanterpool said.
Caleb Agada once again led Nigeria’s charge with 22 points, three rebounds and four steals, while Kaodirichi Akobundu added 14 points and Iroegbu finished with 10.
Despite the morale-boosting victory, Vanterpool insisted the team’s work is not yet complete.
“Our goal was to come here and win three games. The job is not done. We still have a lot of work to do, and we’ll continue preparing this team,” he said.
A victory over Rwanda would complete Nigeria’s target of three wins in Luanda and significantly strengthen the team’s push for a place in the next phase of the African qualifiers as they continue their quest to return to the world stage for the first time since the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
