The KIU Rangers have been one of the worst performing teams in the 2026 NBL season. They finished the first round with a 4-7 record and started the second round with a walkover win against the JKL Lady Dolphins. This put them out of the relegation conversation but a big question remains lingering; are they a disappointment?

In their most recent game, the Rangers lost 47-38 to the Victoria She Crocs. Before that, they lost to the UCU Lady Canons 27-79. At the halftime break in that game, they had scored just 9 points while the Lady Canons had 41. When they faced the KCCA leopards, they lost 38-74. In that game, they scored 0 points in the first quarter.

If you look at these results, they are nothing short of disappointing given what the KIU Rangers are expected to perform like. At the moment, they are a shadow of what they used to be and this is very concerning.

History

In 2023, the KIU Rangers reached the NBL Finals and took game one. However, they lost 4 games in a row and lost the series to the JKL Lady Dolphins.

In 2024, they were eliminated in the semi-finals by the UCU Lady Canons and also lost to the JT Lady Jaguars in the third place game. Fast forward to 2025, the Rangers finished as the number four seed and were eliminated by the UCU Lady Canons.

2026 season so far

Ahead of the 2026 season, the Rangers lost services of players; Fildauce Namulema, Racheal Nanyonga, Brenda Ayere and Patience Karungi. These losses were huge because the Rangers never got better replacements.

In round one, the Rangers registered some questionable losses. After leading by 21 points against the Magic Stormers, they lost the game 75-73. They lost to the Pearl Queens 50-49 despite having led by 12 points in the second half.

The Rangers also lost to the struggling Miracle Eaglets 52-40 and the worst of all, they were bartered 68-47 by the JKL Lady Dolphins who had just 5 players available.

Concerns

Despite the lack of quality in the squad depth, the results should be better. The Rangers have Internationals, Sharon Kirabo, who played for the Gazelles at the 2025 Women’s Afrobasket, and Ines Kanyamuneza, who has been a mainstay on the Burundi National team. Those 2 are some of the best players in the country and they elevate any team they go in.

They were some of the top producers in the first round but their production did not amount to team success. The situation for them hasn’t gotten any better in the second round because their production has declined and the team is looking worse.

The Rangers also have Cinderella Anena who was the leading rebounder in the 2025 FUBA Division One season. On top of that, they added point guard Racheal Nambuya and Esther Marion, who has been around the game for a while.

With all these players available, you would think that the team is good enough to put up decent results but it has not been the case.

When you have 2 of the best players, you have to find ways of maximizing them. In 2025, Kirabo was being fed all the time and she was delivering. Ines changed her role slightly and she was required to be on the ball more. However, she still found ways of getting space to get off some shots and also go to the basket.

Right now, the Rangers’ standards have dropped significantly. They need to demand more from themselves and all this starts intrinsically. If they can find ways of motivating themselves, there is no doubt that we shall see much better performances from them. If things stay the same, the ending could be catastrophic and the team could be worse in the next season.