Rivers Hoopers rounded off their 2026 Nigeria Premier Basketball League campaign with a 92-90 overtime victory over Maktown Flyers in Port Harcourt, finishing the Final Four unbeaten and lifting a seventh national championship. The result, sealed at the Basketball Stadium on Niger Street, capped a season in which the Hoopers stayed among the league's front-runners from start to finish.
The Hoopers had already secured the title with a game to spare but refused to ease off in their final fixture. Regulation time ended level, and Rivers held their nerve in the extra period to complete a clean Final Four run.
There was a redemption element to the result. Last season, Maktown, then competing as Lagos Legends, beat Rivers Hoopers 74-72 in the NPBL final. This time the Hoopers prevailed in another tight contest, reclaiming the domestic crown on home soil.
The championship carries continental consequences: Rivers Hoopers' triumph earns Nigeria's qualification slot for the 2027 Basketball Africa League, returning the Port Harcourt club to Africa's premier club competition after a season away. Head coach Ogoh Odaudu and his squad closed the campaign with both silverware and a return to the BAL stage.
