D’Tigress pip Mali to charge into Afrobasket final

Nigeria’s senior women basketball team, D’Tigress, have defeated host country Mali 48-47 to qualify for the final of the Afrobasket championship.

At the end of the first quarter, the Nigerian side were ahead by 10-7 and in the second quarter, they were up by 23 -12.

Although the Malians attempted a comeback, D’Tigress held them off to end the third quarter 39-29 in their favour.

Having lost in the semifinals to the host country with just one point in the last tournament, D’Tigress worked hard to avoid a repeat, this time, winning by just a point as well.

Point guard Ezinne Kalu told FIBA that the victory “means the world to me because it is my first year playing at FIBA Women’s AfroBasket and I know that we came in Third-Place in 2015 so getting to play the Final this year is amazing.

“I tried to be a leader for my teammates, keep talking to my teammates and try working hard because we are playing against the home team and the crowd. They are a very difficult team to play because they have very good post players and guards and we had to rebound.”

D’Tigress have won all seven games played since the tournament commenced.

They beat Mozambique, Egypt, Congo DR, Guinea and defending champions Senegal in the group stage before overpowering Ivory Coast in the quarterfinal.

The D’Tigress finished in third place at the 2015 Afrobasket tournament in Cameroon.

If victorious against Senegal in the final, it will be the third Afrobasket title for D’Tigress, having been champions in 2003 and 2005.

The semifinal victory has also ensured the team’s qualification for the 2018 FIBA World Cup.