Uganda’s national women’s basketball team, the Gazelles, wrapped up their FIBA Women’s AfroBasket 2025 campaign with a narrow 78-71 loss to hosts Côte d’Ivoire in the seventh-place playoff on Saturday in Abidjan.
The Gazelles showed real fight after a shaky first half, where they were outscored 25-5 in the second quarter and trailed 47-24 at the break.
The Ivorians stretched their lead to 65-43 late in the third, but Uganda refused to go down quietly.
Jane Asinde and company launched an 8-0 run to end the third quarter at 65-51, then continued the push to get within 71-69 with just over a minute to play. However, a few late fouls allowed the Elephants to pull away and seal seventh place.
Despite the loss, captain Asinde struck a hopeful tone.
“Coming here and representing the country has been a learning curve,” she said.
“We picked up a few small things that would’ve seen us go further if we got them right. But we’ve got a talented squad with a bright future. Some of the players might even earn pro deals from this. I’m proud of how far we came.”
Uganda finished eighth overall, matching their placement from 2023.
