Nigeria’s senior male basketball team D’Tigers lost their second match at the ongoing FIBA Afrocan championship in Angola.
Nigeria lost to rivals Angola by 9 points in a game Ogoh Odudu’s men started on the back foot.
D’Tigers failed to replicate their impressive start in their first game against the host as they struggle to dominate the paint and shooting from the arc.
The first quarter ended in favour of the Angolans. Nigeria’s poor start was reflected in the point they scored in 10 minutes while the Angolans, taking advantage of D’Tiger’s sloppiness scored 19 points as against Nigeria’s 9.
Angola continued their dominance in the second quarter as they scored more points in the paint than Nigeria. The host scored 21 points while Nigeria added just three points to what they scored in the first as the first half ended 39-21.
The third quarter was a low scoring one with both sides managing just 21 points. D’Tigers led the quarter with 3 points as it ended 12-9.
With Angola leading by double figures going into the final quarter, D’Tigers led a late charge which saw them score their highest point in the game, 15. Nigeria reduced Angola’s lead to a single digit as the match ended 57-48.
Once again, Michael Afuwape led the team in points. He scored 15 points, had 10 rebounds and 2 assists. Angola’s Biuamba led his team in points as well with 13 points.
The loss against Angola means Nigeria will play in the classification game on Wednesday to book a quarter-final ticket.
