The Nigerian National senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, has defeated Mali 73 to 69 to qualify for the 2022 FIBA World Cup scheduled to hold in Sydney, Australia.
The tournament is billed to hold from September 22 to October 1.
Playing in Group D of the qualifiers, the Nigerian girls rose from a 76 to 90 defeat by China in their opening game to beat France 67 to 65 in their second game before the victory over Mali confirmed their passage to Sydney.
Nicole Enoabosi, 24, emerged the team’s top performer with 11 points, eight rebounds and one assist as the team clinched an automatic World Cup ticket.
Remarkably, Promise Amukamara was the creative force with eight assists and 10 points. Also, Amy Okonkwo recorded 14 points while Atonye Nyingifa had 11 points.
In a swift reaction to the team’s performance, Sports Minister, Sunday Dare, heaped praises on the team for doing the nation proud and showing dogged determination in all their games.
Also, Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) President, Musa Kida, in his recation, traced the team’s continued success to a longterm plan that started at the 2017 Afrobasket.
He said “We knew what we wanted and what we needed to do. In 2018 in Spain, they became the first team from Africa to win two games at the FIBA World Cup and also first out of Africa to advance to the quarter finals”.
Kida added: “We are proud of what we have been able to achieve with this team and we are optimistic that the future can only be brighter with the young talents at our disposal.”
