FIBA World Cup qualifiers: Aboya summons 16 players for window three.

The Basketball Lions will lock horns with their counterparts of South Sudan, Libya and Cabo Verde at the gymnasium of the Japoma Stadium from July 2 to 5 during the Group A series.

The team will kickstart the event sitting second in the Group A standing after winning two of its three matches during the first round of matches in November last year.

Aboya’s roster is headlined by the France-based star Jeremiah Hill of Elan Chalon and team captain Fabien Ateba of Tarbes-Lourdes Pyrennees. 

Former FAP Basketball Club of Yaounde youngster, Ulrich Chomche of the NBA’s Toronto Raptors also returns to the team after over two years of absence from the selection.

The 20-year-old center has faced difficulties breaking into the team’s roster since the Basketball Lions’ showdown with Senegal in the final of the African regional qualifiers to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Nigeria in 2023.

He missed out on the 2025 African basketball championships last year where Cameroon historically reached the semifinals phase before controversially losing 74-73points to the host and subsequent champions, Angola.

Two home-based players are named on the roster: Ekoume Jacques of Littoral Region team, Douala Firebirds, and James Fondong of BEAC Basketball Club of Yaounde. 

Fondong and BEAC successfully defended their title crown in the domestic topflight championship this season while Ekoume and Firebirds performed decently in the competition. 

A mouthwatering five of the players included in the roster ply their trade in France as the pair of Ateba and Hill leads a lineup that also includes Paul Eboua of ASVEL, Roger Moute’s Vendee Challan and Samir Gbetkom of the Antibes Shark.

Gaston Abega of Ristopro Fabriano leads the Italian-based trio of Aristide Mouaha from Valture Brindisi and Dolomiti Energia Trenti’s Jordan Bayehe.

The roster is completed by the quartet of Valentine Lele from Rwanda’s United Generation Basketball, Bursaspor Basketbol of Turkiye’s Landry Nnoko, Russel Tchewa of Shanghai Blackbird in China, New Zealand-based Tametong Choh from Canterbury Rams and power forward Brice Eyaga.

Eyaga most recently played for French second tier championship team, JA Vichy, notably leading the team to the promotion playoff phase of the competition. 

The Basketball Lions will face Cabo Verde on July 2 in their first match of the forthcoming tournament before concluding the series with games against Libya and leaders South Sudan on July 4 and 5 respectively.

Sixteen teams pooled across four groups of four teams each are competing in the ongoing first round of the African regional qualifiers to the 2027 Basketball World Cup tournament which will be held in Qatar next year.

The top-two team from each pool will qualify for the second and final round where the overall top-five ranked countries will claim Africa’s five qualification tickets to the 32 planetary tournament. 

Cameroon is chasing a maiden qualification ticket to the FIBA Basketball World Cup tournament. FECABASKET in its press conference to unveil the list of players, also named the head of coaching for basketball at the University of Dschang, Auguste Siedjou, as an assistant coach for the Basketball Lions.

Siedjou is expected to provide much-needed additional support for head coach Alfred Aboya and his Spanish first assistant, Mikel Ereno. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3813 of Wednesday June 10, 2026