Cape Verde defeated Rwanda to wrap up the group stage with a win and advance to the AfroBasket pre-quarterfinals. The victory gives them momentum heading into the knockout rounds.
Last Updated on
August 19, 2025
Cape Verde got back to winning ways, playing for a 75-62 victory against Rwanda in the last AfroBasket group phase match on Sunday to finish second in their group and book defending champions, Tunisia, in the qualification to quarterfinals.
The Islanders were coming off a one-point loss (82-81) to Cote d’Ivoire, and against a winless Rwanda, they had everything to play for.
Joel Almeida took matters into his hands to drop his best performance yet, registering double digits with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Three others, Patrick Lima, Kenneti Mendes, and Betinho Gomes added 10 points apiece.
“It was a must-win for us to secure our quarters slot. We played collectively, shared the ball, and shot it well. We had good contributions from the bench, and that was important as we progressed in the tournament and built with each game,” Joel said after the win.
Lima opened the scoring from deep, getting the Blue Sharks’ reign in the opening five minutes going as Emanuel Trovoada’s charges raced to an 11-0 lead. Cape Verde dominated the paint while running rings around Rwanda defensively, forcing them to make their shots from range.
Cadeau de Dieu Furaha’s layup opened the scoring for Rwanda from inside, Prince Tokoza Twa, and Bruno Shema dropping threes down the stretch for a 20-8 opening quarter that left the Rwandese well shaken.
Treys from Anim Delgado, Mendes, and Joel lifted Cape Verde to a 31-14 lead, forcing Rwanda into a much-needed timeout. Ntore Habimana and Hason Devere L Ward replied with three-point shots of their own to make it an 11-point game (31-20).
Dieudonne Ndayisaba Ndizeye scored seven in quick succession for 33-27 as the Zone Five side held on for a 21-17 quarter that saw them head to the break with an 8-point deficit (37-29).
Their momentum in the second half was, however, cut short as Edy Tavares’ layup started yet another run for Cape Verde, going 13-0 in the opening four and a half minutes of the third to lead 50-29. An 8-0 run for Rwanda did little to change the trajectory of the game as the Islanders took the quarter 24-12 to lead 61-41 heading to the final stanza.
Rwanda dominated the opening five minutes of the fourth, going on a 13-5 run to trail 66-54. Habimana cut the deficit to 7 (68-61) from the free-throw line after being fouled by Joel, but that was the closest the side would come to threatening Cape Verde, who went on to win by 13, despite losing the final quarter 21-14.
“In today’s game, we got punished for our turnovers. Even though they led by 17 at one point, we got the momentum to get the difference down to 8. We, however, turned the ball over three times and allowed them to score the threes. They did not stop us from shooting from range (10-for-35), but most of our attempts did not drop.
The paint also punished us. They scored 36 points from the bigs, and it was a huge challenge for us. Stopping Tavares is not easy. The 13-point loss does not reflect the game as we made our runs, but in the end, our mistakes cost us a win,” Rwanda’s head coach Cheikh Sarr offered.
Cape Verde face a Tunisian side that is standing on shaky ground. Apart from losing to Nigeria on Friday, the three-time AfroBasket champions saw their decade-long unbeaten run come to an end when they lost their opening group game against Cameroon.
Prior to the 2025 edition, Tunisia last lost an AfroBasket match in the 2015 but finished as the third-best side in Group B.
[Photography Courtesy of FIBA]
