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Nigeria’s D’Tigress showed a championship performance by defeating Colombia in their first match of the FIBA Women’s World Cup qualifying tournament in Lyon on Wednesday with a victory by a margin of 33 points.
René Wakama’s team dominated the game from the first to the last quarter to record a convincing 70-37 point victory.
Forward Victoria Macaulay won the game’s most valuable player award, scoring 13 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist.
Meanwhile, as the games come thick and fast, the Nigerian girls quickly shifted their attention to the upcoming match against South Korea on Thursday.
The Koreans, who are not totally new rivals for the Nigerian team, hope to improve their performance after losing their first match against Germany.
The Nigerian women’s team has faced the Koreans twice in the past, both in qualifiers for the 2016 and 2004 Olympic Games.
Although Nigeria maintains the lead in head-to-head records, winning both games by 70-69 points in 2016 and 68-64 points in 2004, the Koreans will surely not be easy prey when both teams meet again at the Villeurbanne Arena.
D’Tigress setter Elizabeth Balogun, who had an impressive 7.4 rating in the game against Colombia, said the Koreans will be a tougher opponent than the Colombians, but they will be fully prepared and ready for the challenge.
“We respect all the opponents we meet and the Koreans are particularly athletic, which is one of their main strengths, but we won’t take them for granted at all,” he said.
