The Rivers Hoopers won the 2026 Nigeria Premier Basketball League title by finishing the Final Four playoffs 3-0 at home, beating the Maktown Flyers 92-90 in overtime in their last game.
The Kingsmen, as the Port Harcourt club is known, have taken the championship back a year after losing it to the same Flyers, and with it, a return to the Basketball Africa League.
Tunisian guard Omar Abada (189-PG-1993) was the decisive figure in the closing minutes. His two-point basket gave the Hoopers a three-point lead with under three minutes remaining, and he finished with 17 points, six rebounds and six assists. Peter Olisemeka (207-C-1991) had a double-double of 16 points and 18 rebounds. The earlier games were less taxing: the Hoopers beat Aso Sky Hawks 74-60 in their first game and Gboko City Chiefs 88-76 in their second.
It is the club’s seventh domestic league title, following those won in 2011, 2012, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2024. Abel Offia (198-F-2005), who played for Nigeria at the 2023 FIBA AfroCan, was named the season’s Most Valuable Player, and he spoke of his award as a shared one: “This MVP award is not just for me; it represents all the hard work we put in together as a team.” Looking ahead to the BAL, he promised “a very hungry and determined Rivers Hoopers team,” and said they would go to compete and represent Rivers State and Nigeria with pride.
Offia was also named in the All-Tournament Team for the 2026 Nigeria Premier Basketball League season with Abada and Olisemeka, together with Paul Dibal of Aso SkyHawks and Thomas Marcus of Gboko City Chiefs.
