In their Group A encounter at the ongoing FIBA women’s world cup qualifiers in Astroballe, Lyon, Nigeria’s female national basketball team D’Tigress lost to hosts France 93-86.Despite Nigeria winning the third quarter by six points and mounting a comeback in the fourth quarter that was crushed in the last moments, France maintained their lead from the first quarter. With 16 points, Amy Okonkwo topped the girls, closely followed by Elizabeth Balogun and Murjanatu Musa, who each scored 15 points. Nigeria put on a strong but ultimately ineffective second half showing, with Ezinne Kalu scoring 14 points as well.A late rally by D’Tigress cut the first quarter loss to eight points at 29-21, but France seized control of the game right away, grabbing a 6-0 lead early on and winning the quarter on the basis of another six-point 12-6 sequence.The second quarter was more of the same, with France taking an 8-0 lead that they surreptitiously extended to 11 points. However, a late rally spearheaded by Okonkwo and Balogun saw Nigeria post a 7-0 run that cut the deficit to four points, but France extended their lead at the half to 12 points at 57-45. With a 5-0 advantage at the beginning of the third quarter and an 8-0 run midway through, Rena Wakama’s team won the quarter by six points. Both teams traded scores in the fourth and final quarter, which was fiercely contested, but France won in the end.France has defeated Nigeria for the second time in a row in the 2017 FIBA World Cup qualifiers, while the hosts are still undefeated.On Tuesday, March 17, Nigeria will play Germany in the qualifying tournament’s last group encounter.
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