RWANDA men and women's basketball teams failed to live up to the expectations as they were denied a place in this year's 2013 African Cup of Nations following their poor performances in the Zone 5 African Cup of Nations qualifiers which ended yesterday, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

The men's team reached the final only to be denied the title by Egypt, who won the game 82-76. This was Rwanda's second loss to Egypt in the same tournament. Both sides met in the opening match with Egypt ruthlessly beating Rwanda 96-57.

Kenny Gasana stood out and was the tournament's most valuable player after he scored 23 points, made seven assists and six rebounds in the final game against Egypt.

Women secure fourth place finish

The women team finished fourth after defeating their Ugandan counterparts 80-66 in the final game yesterday.

Kenya are the new regional ladies basketball champions after beating Uganda 77-57 in their last match on Friday to finish on top of the table.

The women's competition, which was played in a round robin format, saw Kenya win all their matches. Egypt finished second while Uganda came in third spot.

The win means Kenya and Egypt will participate in the 2013 African Cup of Nations for women which will be hosted by Mozambique while Egypt will represent the zone in the men's African tournament due in DR Congo this the year.