KIGALI (Rwanda) - Hungary and Senegal came up on top of Saturday's Semi-Finals and have now set a rematch, six days since their first meeting in Kigali when Senegal prevailed 63-61.
Here's a look at how the two finalists were met.
Hungary's sense of urgency pays off
Hungary stepped on floor on Saturday aiming to get things done as soon as possible, and an 18-point (37-19) lead in the first half translated Peter Volgyi's team mindset.
Virag Kiss was unstoppable in Great Britain's painted area, scoring 12 of Hungary's 28 points before the break. It was the spark Hungary needed to close the game out with the 82-59 triumph over Great Britain.
Kiss added 5 more points in the second half to finish with a game-high 17 points off the bench, while Reka Lelik contributed 15 points and Agnes Studer added 11.
It was Hungary's third win in four games before the final on Sunday.
Savannah Wilkinson led Great Britain in scoring with 14 points and her teammate Samantha Ashby added 11 points off the bench.
Unlike their terrific offensive display against Rwanda, Great Britain struggled to keep up with Hungary's aggressive defense, and having Holly Winterburn under constant pressure made things even more difficult for Anna Montañana's team. Winterburn finished with 8 points on a 2-for-10 shooting.
Reflecting on Great Britain's second defeat in four games, which marked the end of their Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Pre-Qualifying Tournament campaign, Ashby said: "The biggest challenge was adjusting. We'd played Rwanda, which was obviously a very different team to Hungary. We had to adjust to the way we played our defense. I don't think we were fully locked in today knowing that they have really tall players and we had to dig on them to get some rebounds."
Senegal come up on top in front of 7,023 Rwanda fans
Everything looked perfect for Rwanda to try to advance to Sunday's final.
7,023 fans, mostly Rwanda supporters, filled in most of BK Arena seats, and a 38-31 lead at the break gave the home team hope.
However, when Senegal outstanding forward Ndioma Kane levelled the game up at 42-42 early in the third quarter, it was a game-changer moment.
Senegal continued their resurgence with a 7-2 run in the third quarter, and when Yacine Diop, who finished the first half without a single point after a 0-5 shooting, sank two straight three-pointers midway through the third quarter, Senegal heaved a sigh of relief and never trailed again.
Playing without Keisha Hampton for most of the second half, could have been the last straw for Rwanda, but they weren't prepared to go down without a fight.
With 13 seconds remaining and a huge support from their rowdy home crowd, Rwanda cut the cut to just one point (66-65), but Senegal Cierra Dillard guard, who missed her previous four free-throws, converted the last two shots of the game from the charity stripe to seal Senegal's 68-65 victory.
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FINAL
The Final pairings and schedule for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Pre-Qualifying Tournament Rwanda are now confirmed following the successful conclusion of the Semi-Final.
Senegal, the only undefeated in the tournament (4-0) will take on Hungary (3-1).
AUGUST 25
HUN v SEN - 17:00 Local Time
FIBA