The 2026 Basketball Africa League (BAL) champions departed Kigali on September 18 for Beijing, China, where the prestigious basketball tournament will bring together six teams that have excelled in their respective continental competitions.
On September 17, Minister of Sports Nelly Mukazayire handed the team the national flag and urged the players to “surprise the world” by putting in a strong performance at the intercontinental tournament.
RSSB Tigers will begin their FIBA Intercontinental Cup campaign against Rytas Vilnius of Lithuania, the European champions. The game is scheduled for September 22 at 9:30 a.m. Kigali time.
Twenty-four hours later, the Rwandan champions will return to action against Shanghai Sharks, winners of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) championship. The Chinese side is participating in the tournament as the representative of the host country.
Group B features Beijing Royal Fighters of China, Club Atlético Boca Juniors of Argentina and NBA G League United of the United States.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals, while the teams finishing third in their respective groups will compete for fifth place.
Can RSSB Tigers make history?
African teams began competing in the FIBA Intercontinental Cup in 2022, following the launch of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) in 2021.
Egyptian side Zamalek, Tunisia’s US Monastir and Egypt’s Al Ahly all managed to finish among the top four teams before Al-Ahli SC of Libya made history in 2025 by finishing third, behind Spain’s Unicaja and NBA G League United of the United States.
RSSB Tigers enter this year’s competition with a strengthened squad, hoping to build on their impressive campaign in the 2026 BAL.
Coach Henry Mwinuka has several of Rwanda’s top players at his disposal, including Ntore Habimana, who can operate in multiple positions on the court.
At the 2025 AfroBasket, Ntore demonstrated his quality by averaging 13.3 points, 6.0 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game.
Another key player is Alex Mpoyo, who impressed during the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket qualifiers, averaging 16.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
The team also includes Dieudonné Ndizeye, who recently featured in the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers, as well as Craig Randall II, who was named the 2026 BAL Most Valuable Player (MVP).
Randall averaged an impressive 36.1 points per game during the BAL campaign and recorded a remarkable 54-point performance in April.
Another player who played a crucial role in RSSB Tigers’ BAL title-winning campaign is Teafale Lenard, who averaged 19.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.
The team has also added several new players, including Johnny Hamilton of Trinidad and Tobago, who stands at 2.13 metres tall; American Tyler Bey, who previously played for Ness Ziona and Hapoel Haifa in Israel; and Jonathan Galloway, who is 2.08 metres tall.
The new additions are expected to bring additional experience and strengthen RSSB Tigers’ international competitiveness.
RSSB Tigers have named a 16-player squad for the tournament: Tyler Bey, Bizimana Paul, Jonathan Galloway, Ntore Habimana, Steven Hagumintwari, Johnny Hamilton, Lars Ishimwe, Antino Jackson Jr., Teafale Lenard Jr., Alex Mpoyo, Jean-Victor Mukama, David Mutabazi, Dieudonné Ndizeye, Craig Randall II, Osborn Shema and Nisre Zouzoua.
Coach Henry Mwinuka will be assisted by James Maye and Kenny Gasana.
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