Joe Apu
Reigning champions of the AfroBasket, Nigeria have announced in strong terms her intention to leave nothing to chance as they opened their campaign in style demolishing Tunisia 75-26.
The Nigerians left no one in doubt from the beginning of the game till the end keeping with scores in all the quarters at 14-6, 26-4, 17-5 and 18-11 to coast home to their first win of the championship.
Evelyn Akhator, who was voted Woman of the Match with 13 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists and 1 block had this to say about the game. “We still need to get better because this is the AfroBasket. This game was like bread and butter because the main meal is yet to come so we have to keep fighting and play hard.” Nigeria’s final roster of the 12 players defending their crown at the FIBA Women’s AfroBasket in the Senegalese capital has eight players – including captain Elonu Adaora, who inspired D’Tigress to an eighth place finish at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup 2018 in Spain.
Nigeria head coach Otis Hughley Jr has maintained his core team to try and build on that incredible performance that reminded many that D’Tigress mean business.
Former captain Aisha Balabare, who made her FIBA Women’s AfroBasket debut in 2005, is featuring in her fourth edition and remains the most experienced player in this squad at this level.
She along with Elonu, Evelyn Akhator, Ezinne Kalu, Sarah Ogoke and Atonye Nyingifa are the returnees from the 2017 squad that won the African title and will be digging deep to replicate that form that dispatched Senegal in the final and shocked the continent.