The D’Tigress of Nigeria have defeated the Opals of Australia in their first match at the ongoing 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Rena Wakama-led ladies pulled off a spirited performance to beat the Australians 75-62 at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium on Monday.
The victory was the team’s first win in an Olympic match since Athens 2004.
It was a sensational performance by the African side as they capitalized on Australian turnovers to take victory in front of another huge crowd in Lille.
Nigeria posted a spectacular 11-0 run to finish to the first half and that gave them a 13-point cushion heading to the locker rooms.
That proved enough for them to get over the line and when the Opals did make it a one shot game in the last period with four minutes remaining, Amy Okonkwo settled Nigerian nerves with a huge triple to get them rolling again.
This won’t be remembered for any heroics other than those performed by the entire Nigerian team. However, there is no doubt that Ezinne Kalu was the class act that carried them to this memorable success. The playmaker has not represented her country since Tokyo 2020 and was on fire with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
Australia spilled the ball a staggering 26 times in the game and that handed Nigeria a huge 26 points from turnovers. It was a difference-maker and especially in the first half when they almost handed their opponents a point per minute from that source.
Nigeria were outstanding considering they had a slow start. Their defense was particularly impressive and with this win, they could prove to be the fly in the ointment of predictions about Group B. They flew the flag for African basketball in a big way.
Australia looked disjointed and their guards didn’t cope with the ball pressure as they quite literally threw away any chance of a victory.
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