D’Tigers will gather later this month in Tunisia for the fourth round of the 2027 FIBA Men’s Basketball World Cup qualifiers. Head coach David Fizdale has named a 12-man team for Nigeria’s important second-round matches, according to PUNCH Sports Extra.
The team includes Chimezie Metu, Josh Okogie, Caleb Agada, Stan Okoye, Chima Moneke, Ike Nwamu, Udoka Azubuike, Efe Abogidi, Ebuka Izundu, Manny Obaseki, Jordan Ogundiran, and Michael Efevberha.
Fizdale will have Dan Craig, Quinton Crawford, Deji Akindele, and Dapo Adegbile as his assistants.
One big news is the return of Moneke. He will play for Nigeria for the first time in an official senior international game since the FIBA AfroBasket 2021 Qualifiers in February 2021.
Moneke was named in early rosters for major events like the Tokyo Olympics, but he did not make the final team and has not played for D’Tigers in an official match since then.
Nigeria is one of the 12 teams that moved to the second round of the African qualifiers after the first three windows held in November 2025, February 2026, and July 2026.
All teams will carry their results from the first round into the second phase. This makes every match important in the fight for spots at the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar.
In the second round, each team will play against the three teams that advanced from the other group in two more windows set for August 2026 and February 2027.
After these six games, the top two teams in each group, plus the best third-placed team, will qualify for the World Cup.
Nigeria has been placed in a group with Cameroon, South Sudan, Guinea, Tunisia, and Cape Verde.
D’Tigers will play Cameroon on August 27, South Sudan on August 28, and Cape Verde on August 30 in the upcoming window.
The final qualifying window will occur in February 2027, with five African teams expected to earn spots for the World Cup in Qatar.
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