Quarter-finals

Thursday, September 12

Morocco vs Angola – 12:30 p.m.

Rwanda vs Cameroon – 3:00 p.m.

Egypt vs Senegal – 5:30 p.m.

Mali vs Nigeria – 8:00 p.m.

Rwanda U-18 men’s basketball head coach Yves Murenzi has emphasised the importance of winning Thursday’s quarter-final game against Cameroon in the ongoing FIBA men’s U18 Afrobasket Championship, taking place in South Africa.

The pair rub shoulders at the University of Pretoria Gymnasium at 3:00 p.m.

Both Rwanda’s output in the group stage has been quite impressive winning all their games to qualify for the knockouts unbeaten with a 3-0 ratio. They face a Cameroonian side which made it through the last eight after they were awarded a wild card.

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It’s fair to say that Rwanda have an upper hand on the game but, in an exclusive interview with Times Sport, Murenzi stressed the team's determination to win regardless the opponent and advance further into the semifinals.

"We are well-prepared. We completed our first goal of finishing the group stage without a loss. Now, the only thing left is to win today’s game and move towards our goal of reaching the semifinals and the final,” Murenzi said.

Rwanda boasts a variety of offensive options, starting with Dylan Kayijuka, the competition's leading scorer, averaging 21.3 points per game. Besides, Sean Mwesigwa, with 17.7 points per game, is a lethal long-range shooter, while Jayden Rushema adds depth with 9.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2 assists per game.

The Rwandan team has capitalized on several key areas in their past group stage games, including scoring off turnovers (32 points per game), points in the paint (21.7 per game), and significant contributions from their bench (19 points per game).