- Safiu Kehinde
Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, has continued their dominance as they sealed a 60-55 victory over Mozambique in their final Group D game of the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket in Abidjan.
The win at the Palais des Sports de Treichville on Monday secured D’Tigress a direct ticket to the quarterfinals as Group D winners, having won both group matches.
Nigeria trailed at halftime by 28-24 points, as Mozambique stole the show in the first quarter by 13-9 points while sharing 15-15 points in the second quarters with the defending champions.
The D-Tigress however bounced back in the second half as they secured 18-15 points in the third quaters while repeating the feat in the final quarter by 18-12 points through an impressive last four minutes outclassing performance that secured their 26th tournament win.
Nigeria’s resurgence began with Promise Amukamara’s three-pointer, which gave Nigeria a 45-42 lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
The defending champions then played more aggressively on defense, and Mozambique struggled to keep up. Kalu scored a layup, followed by a free throw, leaving Mozambique in trouble.
However, Mozambique managed to fight back with a drive by Inglid Mucauro that cut the deficit to 50-49 with 4:30 minutes remaining.
Nigeria eventually emerged winner with 60-55 points in another display of their prowess.
Star guard Ezinne Kalu, the 2019 MVP, was instrumental once again, leading all scorers with 16 points and five steals, while helping Nigeria to avoid a potential upset.
D’Tigress will now prepare for the quarterfinals as they continue their quest for a fourth consecutive Women’s AfroBasket title.
The team had earlier defeated Rwanda on Saturday.