D’Tigress of Nigeria faces an uphill task against the USA team who is ranked number 1 in the world,having previously defeated Australia(3) and Canada(5) in the two of their 3 group games in the tournament.
The game which is set to take place in Paris later today,will kick off at 8:00 PM Nigerian time,and will see the African champion battle it out with the world giant and defending champion-who is aiming for their 10th Olympic title,for a place in the semi-final of the tournament.
D Tigress who made history by becoming the first African basketball team to reach the quarter final in an Olympic tournament will be hoping to cause an upset and advance to the next stage of the tournament at the expense of the high flying Americans who won all three of their group games.
Led by playmaker Ezinne kalu,who has been exceptional for the Nigerian team scoring at 19.3 points per game, the 5th best in the tournament and only behind players who have been multiple-time WNBA All-Stars. She notched 19 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals in Nigeria’s upset of Australia, one of the most well-rounded performances in the group stage. And her haul of 21 points against Canada made her the first Nigerian player to score 20 or more points at the Olympics since Mfon Udoka, in Athens 2004.
The USA who recently defeated D’Tigress 100-46 in thier Olympic qualifier match in Belgium earlier this year will be hoping to to repeat the same feat to reach the semi-final of the tournament.