DR Congo shock D'Tigers of Nigeria

2015 FIBA Men's Afrobasket Champions D'Tigers of Nigeria got stunned in Sunday's Group A final game as they were defeated by DR Congo by 83-77 at the Salle Omnisport de Rades.

In the game which saw D'Tigers  winning both first and second quarter by narrow margin 20-19, 17-15 respectively but the table turns all thanks too Congolese Kabongo who was the game changer, which led to a draw in the third quarter by 18-18 point and a win of the last quarter by 22-31.

After the game the 25-year-old guard, Lukusa Kabongo who had 17 points and 8 assist told FIBA. basketball "Beating the defending champion, Nigeria might be surprising to many but our belief is that every game count and we are ready for any opposition in the Quarter-Final," he explained.

And, for Nigeria captain Ike Diogu, who sat out the entire duration of the 2015 winning squad due to injury, losing to the Congolese side serves a wake-up call to him and the rest of the team.

Diogu says the FIBA Afrobasket has grown and no country is a pushover.
The 6 ft8 (2.03m) power forward says Nigeria is ready for any country in the Final Phase. "Honestly, I must say that the FIBA Afrobasket Championship has come of age and will continue to get better so all sixteen teams have equal chances of winning it. "We are not deterred by our loss to RD Congo, but will only use it as a wake-up call that the championship is getting tougher as we await whoever comes our way in the quarter-final," he concluded.