Nigeria’s D’Tigress delivered a championship-calibre performance, sweeping aside Colombia in their opening game of the FIBA Women’s World Cup qualification tournament in Lyon on Wednesday with a dominant 33-point victory.
Rene Wakama’s team controlled the game from start to finish, recording a convincing 70-37 win. Forward Victoria Macaulay was named the game’s Most Valuable Player, contributing 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 assist.
With matches coming thick and fast, the Nigerian squad has swiftly turned its attention to their next fixture against South Korea on Thursday. The Koreans, familiar opponents to Nigeria, will be aiming for an improved showing after losing their opening game to Germany.
The Nigeria Women’s team has faced South Korea twice previously, both times in Olympic Games qualifiers in 2016 and 2004. While Nigeria leads the head-to-head record, winning both games 70-69 in 2016 and 68-64 in 2004, the Koreans are certainly not expected to be a pushover when the teams meet again at the Villeurbanne Arena.
D’Tigress point guard Elizabeth Balogun, who achieved an impressive 7.4 rating against Colombia, stated that the Koreans would present a tougher challenge than Colombia, but assured that they would be fully prepared for it.
“We respect every opponent we come across, and the Koreans are particularly very athletic, which is one of their major strengths, but we will not take them for granted at all,” she said.
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