Desmond Iwuchukwu
Nigeria Women’s Basketball team D’Tigress has been drawn against host Australia, France, Serbia, Japan, Canada in group B of the competition.
Group A comprises Belgium, China, South Korea, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the United States of America.
The tournament is billed for September 22 – October 1, 2022, in Sydney, Australia.
In the meantime, the President of Nigeria Basketball Federation Engr Musa Kida said hard work and strategic preparation for the D’Tigress will enable the team to succeed at the 2022 Federation of International Basketball FIBA Women’s World Cup in Australia.
Kida while reacting after the draws said, “In the last four years, we have continued to shock the world and other teams are now paying some serious attention to us. To continue on that path, we have to work extra hard to sustain the tempo”.
The federation while stressing the importance of presenting its best effort for the tournament said there is a need for robust players and early preparation.
Kida said the NBBF will line up some grade-A friendlies for the Otis Hughley-led team while in camp.
“This is where the Federal Government comes in through funding. Early approval and release of funds are at the core of all our proposed plans. Preparing for such an important tournament costs money and we will be banking on the Federal Government”, Kida said.
“We are no longer referred to as just another team from Africa. We are now being addressed as Nigeria based on what we have achieved in the last four years which saw us winning 3 Afrobasket titles, back to back world cup qualification and Olympics participation”.
Currently the lowest-ranked team in the group, D’Tigress is unmindful of the task ahead as the sole representative of Africa at the global and a quest to pick one of the four available quarter-finals tickets.
