Nigeria's D'Tigress have made history at the Paris 2024 Olympics by becoming the first African basketball team, male or female, to reach the quarterfinals of any Olympic Games. The back-to-back Afrobasket champions secured this historic achievement with a stunning 79-70 victory over Canada in Lille, France.
The game saw Nigeria tie 18-18 in the first quarter, lose the second by four points (23-19), dominate the third with an 18-point lead (5-23), and conclude the match by narrowly losing the fourth quarter (24-19).
This victory marks Nigeria's first time winning two games at the Olympics and sends winless Canada home early. D'Tigress's impressive performance underscores their status as a rising powerhouse in international women's basketball.
D’Tigress secured the upper hand in the contest with a stunning 11-0 run to start the second half. They left Canada reeling and never recovered.
Expectedly, the usual suspect, Ezinne Kalu, played a hugely influential role in the victory, pulling the strings in the backcourt.
The playmaker registered 21 points, while Elizabeth Balogun chose a great time to have her best game in memory as she stepped up with 14 points, three rebounds, and three assists.
D’Tigress was ruthless in punishing Canadian errors with an incredible 27 points from turnovers.
Nigeria looks like they could give absolutely anybody in the tournament a game right now. Their rugged defense was back after a lapse in their previous game against France.
Physically they are a handful and anyone they come up against in the quarterfinals will have to play well to beat them. And that speaks volumes.