D’Tigers have been knocked out of the ongoing maiden edition of the FIBA AfroCan in Bamako, after losing 85-80 to Algeria in their round of 16 fixture on Tuesday, July 22, 2019.
The team, led by Ogor Odaudu, could not progress into the next round of the tournament following their lackluster performance against the North Africans.
A win for Nigeria would have set D’Tigers for a quarter-final clash against Angola, who finished as group leaders in group C.
Nigeria Vs Algeria
D’Tigers dominated the first quarter of the encounter, which ended 21-15 in favor of Nigeria.
The Algerians kept throbbing Nigeria’s side of the court, reducing the scoreline wit each dunk. On D’Tigers part, they were unable to maintain their dominance over Algeria, as they slowly usurped control of the game to the North Africans.
At the end of the second quarter, the Algerians had all-but successfully leveled the scores, as they won the quarter with 2 points ahead of Nigeria.
D’Tigers got back in the game in the third quarter and restored their lead, to finish at 21-20.
In the fourth quarter, Algeria came out more determined to take home the win and this was quite evident as they quickly upped their tactical plan to win the final quarter 25-16 and to win the game with 85-80 points.
Captain, Abdul Yahaya, was Nigeria’s best performer, scoring a total of 26 points, while Abdulwahad Yakubu of Gombe Bulls scored 16 points with an 80% 3-pointer accuracy.
FIBA AfroCan
The FIBA AfroCan is a new men’s African basketball competition which will be held biennially, governed by FIBA (International Basketball Federation), and the FIBA African Zone.
Source:
Punchng
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