D’Tigers suffered a first-ever defeat to Guinea, falling 69-55 in the qualifiers for the 2027 FIBA World Cup on Saturday at the Salle Omnisports de Rades in Tunisia.
Guinea dominated the encounter from start to finish, outplaying the Nigerian team in what turned out to be a largely one-sided contest that marked their first victory over D’Tigers in four attempts dating back to 1985.
Souleyman Boum Jr. and Shannon Evans combined for 40 points to lead Guinea to a perfect 2-0 start in the opening round of the African qualifiers.
The defeat comes after D’Tigers’ opening-day loss to hosts Tunisia on Thursday, leaving Coach Abdulrahman Mohamed’s side with a mountain to climb in the qualification series.
Nigeria trailed 22-16 at the end of the first quarter and failed to improve in the second, heading into half-time with a 35-26 deficit. Although D’Tigers showed brief signs of recovery in the third quarter, the Guineans maintained control and extended their advantage in the final period to seal a comfortable 14-point win.
Guinea’s Serbian coach, Nedeljko Ascerić, attributed the victory to his side’s defensive intensity.
“The X-factor was our defence. We held them to 27 per cent shooting,” Ascerić said.
The loss represents a significant shift in African basketball dynamics. Guinea, who returned to elite basketball in the same arena in 2017 after 32 years away with a 0-3 record, have now established themselves as a force on the continent after shocking top-ranked South Sudan at the 2025 AfroBasket.
Nigeria will face Rwanda on Sunday (today) in their final game of the initial phase of the first round of qualifiers. All teams in the group will meet again in the second phase of the first round, after which the top three sides will advance to the final qualification round.
