Historic win for Rwanda to reach FIBA Women’s Afrobasket semis

Rwanda qualified for the 2023 FIBA Women's AfroBasket Semi-Finals courtesy of a victory made of sweat, skills and determination over Uganda in a 66-61.

The hosts of the tournament, buoyed by very vocal fans and by 1.72 m (5ft 8in) Destiney Promise Philoxy, were a bit shaken at first, but turned the tables at the right moment to show they belong among the tournament's final four.

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Though at first, it seemed tough for Rwanda to make a statement, they patiently waited for their time to outrun Uganda and shine their light on the game.

And though desperate, the final attempts of Uganda saw them close a 20-point gap to 3 points, but they couldn't get any closer.

Outscoring Rwanda in the last quarter brought nothing as the hosts had just enough points to make it through.

“This is historical. It's amazing. It's a dream come true for us. Nobody has done it before and we did it. We will just play and do what we got to do, give it all to reach the final. We’re out to win it all,” Rwanda’s point guard Ineza Sifa said.

After trailing 22-11 in the first quarter, the hosts turned the tables for a 16-06 second quarter, making it a one-point match heading to the break.

Coming back from halftime, the hosts kept going, this time with a 24-10 run, which would see them reach their biggest lead at 51-32. Despite outscoring the hosts 23-15 in the final period, it was not enough to hand Uganda victory and their fairytale run was brought to a halt by fellow Zone Five rivals.

Sifa, the 21-year-old guard was the hero Rwanda needed to get through. Sure enough, she rose to the occasion with 19 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists to become Rwanda’s flag-bearer at this stage.

Rwanda perfectly exploited Uganda’s turnovers, scoring 18 points from the 26 Ugandan turnovers. To add to these figures, Rwanda was better at scoring fast breaks, with 17 points earned to Uganda’s 4.

The Cheikh Sarr-coached Rwanda have now made it to this level and have their work cut out in their quest for a final berth.

"It was not the result we expected. But Rwanda came out very aggressive, with a big fighting spirit. We had our fighting spirit too, we were down by 20 points, we came back, but those 5 points were just too much for us. We could have defended better. On another hand, I'm super proud to have played with these girls and of what we have achieved together,” Uganda’s Mellissa Akullu offered.