By Victor Kanayo
Nigeria’s senior women basketball team, mostly known as D’Tigress on Friday beat DR Congo 69-35 in the opening group match of the ongoing 2023 FIBA Women’s Afrobasket tournament holding in Kigali, Rwanda.
The match which saw the Nigerian side dominate, raised hope of Africa’s number one basketball team defending the title they have won three times consecutively.
Though, the team arrived in Kigali, just two days before their first game, they were still able to emerge victorious.
How D’Tigress Dominated Play
Statistics showed that they won all four quarters.
All through the game, the Nigerian ladies struggled with their chemistry and team bonding due to the manner in which the team was put together.
D’Tigress started strongly with a 16-8 point lead at the end of the first quarter.
Coach Rena Wakama’s side could not maintain the early tempo in the second and third quarters, where they narrowly won 13-10 and 17-14, respectively.
With a 14-point lead in the final quarter, D’Tigress did not relent as they recorded a massive 23-3 margin.
Standout Players
Ifunaya Okoro and Elizabeth Balogun led with 11 points each, while Sarah Ogoke and Tomi Taiwo contributed 10 points each to the D’Tigress’ total tally.
Stretched Unbeaten Record
D’Tigress are now on a 19-0 unbeaten streak since 2015.
They have also won the last three editions of the tournament and aim to become the first team since Senegal did it in the 1970s by winning four consecutive titles.
On Sunday, July 30, Nigeria will face Egypt in their second group game.
The competition will run between July 28 and August 6.
