DR Congo grinds out historic win over Rwanda to stay alive in 2025 Afrobasket

Still haunted by their historic collapse to Cape Verde earlier in the week, DR Congo stepped back onto the court Friday night with something to prove — and they delivered. In a gritty showdown at the AfroBasket 2025, the Congolese battled past Rwanda 65-58 to keep their tournament hopes alive and avoid back-to-back heartbreaks.

Just 48 hours after letting a 16-point lead slip through their fingers, DR Congo showed renewed focus and fight, especially in the closing minutes. This time, there was no crumble — just composure, control, and a crucial win.

Jordan Sacko was the difference-maker. The standout forward put in a monster performance, posting a 21-point, 14-rebound double-double, including 5 offensive boards. He was relentless, owning the paint and leading his team on both ends of the floor. Garmine Kande Kieli added 15 points and 13 boards, while Claude Christian chipped in 10 points and 9 rebounds — their combined 22 rebounds helped Congo dominate the glass 52-33.

For Rwanda, Ntore Habimana dropped 16 points, while William Robeyns added 14. But the most efficient on the night was Hason Devere Ward, who recorded 12 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals in a well-rounded effort.

Despite struggling from beyond the arc (6-of-23), DR Congo’s physicality and rebounding edge made all the difference. Rwanda shot better from deep (9-of-29) but couldn’t capitalize on key possessions late in the game.

DR Congo got on the scoreboard first through Jordan Sakho, but Rwanda answered quickly with a three from Dieudonne Ndizeye. A late first-quarter push gave the Congolese control, closing the opening 10 minutes up 26-18. The momentum carried into the second, with Congo playing efficient, high-IQ basketball to head into halftime with a 37-24 lead.

But Rwanda wasn’t done.

A strong third quarter — which has become a danger zone for Congo — saw Rwanda claw back with a 19-14 edge, trimming the lead and setting the stage for a tense final stretch. David Mutabazi’s deep three tied the game at 51-51 early in the fourth, capping off an 8-0 Rwandan run that stunned the Congolese bench.

Coach Michel Perrin called for calm, and his team responded with a clutch 6-0 burst to regain control. Rwanda called timeout but couldn’t stop the bleeding. Turnovers haunted them down the stretch, and DR Congo’s discipline late — the very thing they lacked in the loss to Cape Verde — sealed the deal.

The win moves DR Congo to 1-1, while Rwanda drops to 0-2 and now face elimination in Angola.

Speaking postgame, Coach Perrin acknowledged the recurring third-quarter lapses that continue to threaten their progress. “It’s something we need to fix immediately. We’re learning fast — the next game, we need to be locked in from start to finish,” he said.

“It was a tough game but we started the right way like we did in the first but we need to check our situation in the third quarter where we had a bad run. We defended well this time around but we hoped to work on our offensive approach as we look ahead to the final group game.”

Christian who last played in the AfroBasket for DR Congo in 2007 when Angola hosted as well was happy to be a part of the squad that secured a first win as he touched on the difficulty they faced against Rwanda.

"We are happy we won but we had a really tough time playing against the point guard. It was a young team no doubt but they had the point guard as it appeared that everything was going through him and he was very physical too but we are happy with the win.”

The Rwandan Coach Cheikh Sarr said afterwards that a win in the final group game is non-negotiable.

"We have no choice but to keep fighting because we came here to compete, we made a lot of mistakes with the turnovers in the first game but we corrected that a bit today. Our players are still young and we have few professionals in the squad but they have the right heart and we will go into the final game just to win.”

The win keeps DR Congo in contention to top Group A, though questions remain about their consistency.

Next up for DRCongo will be a game against Ivory Coast with a win all but ensuring a place in the quarter finals while Rwanda will be hoping to register a first win with a make or mar date with Cape Verde Islands.

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