Rwanda’s men’s national basketball team was eliminated from the 2026 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifying campaign on Sunday, July 5, 2026, after suffering a 106-62 defeat to Nigeria in Luanda, finishing the tournament without a victory.
The loss marked Rwanda’s sixth straight defeat in Group C, leaving the team bottom of the standings with six points after a winless qualifying run.
Nigeria controlled the game from the start, leading in every quarter and building a comfortable advantage that Rwanda never threatened.
The Nigerians led 25-14 after the first quarter and extended their dominance with a 24-15 second-quarter edge. They further widened the gap by outscoring Rwanda 31-15 in the third quarter before closing the game with a 26-18 final period.
Prince Twa led Rwanda with 14 points, while Uche Iroegbu top-scored for Nigeria with 17 points.
The defeat completed a difficult qualifying campaign for Rwanda, coached by Yves Murenzi and assisted by Sunny Munyandamutsa Niyomugabo and Aristide Mugabe.
Rwanda opened its qualifiers in November 2025 with an 82-70 loss to Guinea, followed by a 79-66 defeat to Tunisia and a 75-69 loss to Nigeria. In the second qualifying window in Luanda, Rwanda again fell to Guinea 89-67 and Tunisia 83-67 before Sunday’s 106-62 defeat to Nigeria sealed its exit without a win.
The qualifying matches were played at Pavilhão Multiusos de Luanda in Angola.
