Africa-Press – Rwanda. Sunday, August 3
Final
Nigeria 78-64 Mali
Third-place
South Sudan 66-65 Senegal
Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, were Sunday, August 3, crowned 2025 FIBA AfroBasket champions for a record fifth consecutive time after rallying from an early deficit to defeat Mali 78-64 in the final held at the Palais des Sports Treichville in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
The victory makes Nigeria the only country ever to win the women’s Afrobasket title five times in a row.
D’Tigress also booked an automatic ticket for the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup in Berlin, Germany.
Nigeria qualified for the final after a tricky semi-final clash against Senegal. They barely progressed courtesy of a spirited fourth quarter display against the Senegalese.
The game against the Malians was the opposite in narrative to the previous one. Although Mali raced to the lead at the end of the first quarter, 26-21, Nigeria caught up with them and the scoreline was tied at 41 each at halftime.
The third quarter was brilliant from D’Tigress, and the team finally showed their superior quality. Nigeria was ahead 61-56 by the sound of the buzzer.
The final quarter was the same tune as D’Tigress limited the Malians to only eight points as Nigeria wrapped up a 14-point victory.
D’Tigress have won a total of seven Women’s Afrobasket titles. The team also remained unbeaten in the Women’s Afrobasket over the last decade. The last time D’Tigress lost in the competition was on October 2, 2015, against Cameroon.
Nigeria won its first Women’s Afrobasket in 2003 and also picked up its second in the following edition. D’Tigress have also won all five Afrobaskets held since 2017.
Meanwhile, South Sudan claimed historic bronze at the 2025 Women’s AfroBasket.
Earlier in the day, tournament debutants South Sudan claimed a historic bronze medal with a dramatic 66-65 win over eleven-time champions Senegal in the third place match.
It’s the Bright Starlets’ first ever continental medal, and the first time a debutant has won a medal at the competition.
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