Nigeria’s D’Tigers were beaten 78-62 by Cameroon in Rades, Tunisia, suffering their second loss in the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup African qualifying campaign.
The result brought an end to Nigeria’s three-match winning run. David Fizdale’s team had won all three games in the previous qualifying window to strengthen their hopes of reaching the World Cup.
Cameroon were the better side in three of the four quarters, with Yves Missi causing constant problems for Nigeria’s defence. He top-scored with 24 points and also collected nine rebounds.
Nigeria’s shooting performance was a major weakness, as they made only 33.3 per cent of their two-point attempts, compared with Cameroon’s 50 per cent success rate.
The gap also favoured Cameroon beyond the arc, where they shot 27.6 per cent against Nigeria’s 17.8 per cent. Cameroon further held the advantage at the free-throw line, converting 74.1 per cent of their attempts to Nigeria’s 66.7 per cent.
Caleb Agada was Nigeria’s leading scorer with 13 points, while Efe Abogidi contributed 12. Josh Okogie finished with a game-high 10 rebounds.
D’Tigers remain fourth in Group E with 11 points from four victories and two defeats.
South Sudan moved to 12 points after overcoming Guinea 81-71, leaving them one point behind group leaders Cameroon.
Nigeria’s next assignment is against Guinea today at 1pm, with another crucial qualifier awaiting them.
The two highest-ranked teams in each group will secure qualification for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar, joined by the best third-placed team from the two groups.
