D’Tigress beat Mozambique 85-51 in Tokyo 2020 Olympics qualifiers

185

Nigeria’s senior women national basketball Team, D Tigress, on Thursday beat Mozambique 85-51 in the 2020 FIBA Women Olympic Qualifiers in Belgrade, Serbia.

Nigeria are grouped alongside Mozambique, world champions U.S. and hosts Serbia.

In the highly-entertaining game, all 12 Nigerian players on the roaster scored at least two points with Promise Amukamara leading with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 assists.

Rebound queen Evelyn Akhator picked up 7 and scored 9 points.

Team captain Adaora Elonu had 10points, 4 assists and 3 steals with 100 per cent records from her two points attempts, while Ezinne Kalu recorded 11 points and 5 assists;

Mozambique started like a house on fire in the first quarter to lead Nigeria 19-18 heading into the second quarter.

But it was all about the coach Otis Hughley-led team immediately the second quarter resumed.

The team stepped up its game with some solid defensive play and full court press to frustrate their fellow Africans as they dominated the rest of the quarters 23-9 15-13 19-10 to enjoy a 34-point victory.

Elizabeth Balogun’s debut for Nigeria was rewarded with 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals after playing 16:25 minutes.

Nigeria will face hosts Serbia on Saturday at the Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in Belgrade, before their last game against the U.S. on Sunday.