Rwandan star point guard Sifa Joyeuse Ineza has joined the Middle Tennessee Lady Raiders women's basketball club. The club represents Middle Tennessee State University in women's basketball, to compete in the Conference USA in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). ALSO READ: Sifa Ineza: The meteoric rise of the Rwandan female basketball wonderkid The signing of Ineza comes a few days after another Rwandan player Hope Butera joined Idaho Vandals women’s basketball team. Ineza, a former player for the Florida International University (FIU), will call the Murphy Center home next week. Sifa brings great experience playing a full season of college basketball and doing it at a high level being named to the C-USA All-Freshman team, Lady Raiders head coach Rick Insell said. ALSO READ: Rwanda’s Ineza shines for FIU in Conference USA She has great scoring ability being able to score out on the floor from the three and being able to slash off the bounce scoring at the rim. We are excited to have someone with her experience and skill set join us and we look forward to her future as a Blue Raider. The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders women's basketball team represents A C-USA All-Freshman team selection in 2023, and Sifa will join the Lady Raiders with three years of eligibility remaining. The Musanze, Rwanda native played 28 games this past season and was second on the Panthers with 18 starts. She paced FIU with 45 three pointers made (8th in C-USA) on 32.8 percent shooting from behind the arc. Ineza was the third leading scorer for FIU, averaging 8.7 points per game while playing just under 18 minutes a game (17.7). The 5-foot-11 (1.80m) wing was named C-USA Freshman of the week on December 4 after matching her career high of 21 points on November 27 against UMass while making a career-high five three pointers in that game. Ineza posted her first career double-double on November 30 against Florida National, scoring 18 points and grabbing a career-high 11 rebounds. She led the Panthers in scoring in six games this season and scored double digits in 12 games. In addition to her collegiate career, Ineza is a member of the Rwanda national team and will be representing her country in the FIBA AfroBasket that will take place in Kigali from July 28 to August 6.
