Making his second appearance in the senior national team, former U-16 & U-18 National team captain, Dick Sano Rutatika continues to show tremendous promise. The 19-year-old had 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting and had seven rebounds in the win against South Sudan
Rutatika hit 3-of-6 three-pointers and scored a team-high 11 points in 19 minutes to help Rwanda win its second consecutive FIBA AfroCan Zone 5 Qualifier.
With a huge performance by Rutatika, Rwanda picked up a much-needed win in the AfroCan qualifiers, defeating South Sudan 72-55 on Monday, June 19 at Benjamin Mkapa Indoor Court.
Rwanda started well, however, suffered a massive blow as the leading point guard William Robeyns had an injury that held him out for 37 minutes.
The Rwandans won the opening quarter 16-14 then Dr Sarr chose to deploy the bench team in the second quarter, and they outscored South Sudan 21-9.
In the third quarter, Rwanda maintained its lead and went into the final ten minutes with a 19-point lead, 36-55. The last ten minutes were insufficient for Ajou Deng’s side to close the gap, as they lost 55-72.
Dick Sano Rutatika, Ntore Habimana, Steven Hagumintwali, and Dieudonne Ndizeye Ndayisaba all finished with 11 points apiece. Aluk Lual Adub of South Sudan led all scorers with 17 points.
Rutatika made his senior debut on Sunday when Rwanda defeated Eritrea 114-34. In 19 minutes, he had 7 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Rutatika,19, 2.06 m, a graduate of NBA Africa, is regarded as a prospective talent after leading the National teams at the under-age level. He averaged 10.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in the 2022 FIBA U18 African Championship.
In the 2019 FIBA U16 African Championship, Rutatika had 13.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 0.9 assists per game. He currently plays and studies in the USA
Rwanda’s next match is against Tanzania on Tuesday night at Benjamin Mkapa Indoor Stadium.
