NIGERIA’S D’Tigress defeated Mozambique 59-52 tonight in Kigali, Rwanda to advance to the semi-finals of the FIFA Women’s AfroBasket Championship.
The defending champions are on a quest for a record-equalling fourth straight title but they got off to a slow start against Mozambique, losing the first two quarters.
D’Tigress trailed 33-29 at half-time but stepped up their game in the third and fourth quarters.
They took the lead for the first time at the end of the third quarter and wrapped up the seven-point victory with a 12-9 score in the final period.
D’Tigress converted 35 percent of their two-point shots to Mozambique’s 31 percent, and were clearly superior from farther out with a 38 percent conversion of three-point shots to Mozambique’s dismal 10 percent.
Amy Okonkwo once again stood out for the champions with 17 points, as Elizabeth Balogun added 12 points, meaning the two of them contributed almost 50 percent of the points.
Tamara Seda was Mozambique’s stats leader with 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
D’Tigress will face Rwanda tomorrow in the semi-finals after the hosts defeated Uganda 66-61 in their quarter-final tie earlier today.
Nigeria are aiming to win four titles in a row to equal the record Senegal set between 1974 and 1981.
