Nigeria’s D’Tigers lost their first qualifier against Ivory Coast on Friday night at the Palais des Sports Treichville in Abidjan
The Nigerian team, who suffered three losses in their last qualifying window, suffered another at the hands of the Elephants, who defeated them 78-66.
In the first quarter both teams separated with 14 points each. But in the second quarter the Elephants took the lead 28:22. They went on to claim victories in the third and fourth quarters; 18-16 or 18-14.
Chimezie Metu and Josh Okogie missed three shots in the final 30 seconds as the Nigerian side desperately tried to catch up with the home side, but Côte d’Ivoire took advantage of the mistakes to extend their lead.
Udoh Udofia, who represented Coach Mike Brown at the post-game conference, stated that the team will bounce back in the next two games.
Udofia admitted his team fell on the elephant but said they will make corrections in their next games.
“I want to say that they are one of the most difficult teams in Africa at the moment. They were good tonight but our guys fell. We have to put it together. There are some things we need to clean up.
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“It’s the first time we’ve played together against this group. We’re fine, we’re just watching the movie. We look at the things we did well and the things we did badly and correct them.”
Josh Okojie said while speaking to the press throughout the pitch zone that D’Tigers didn’t struggle when playing against such a style but took time to get their act together.
Following their defeat by Ivory Coast, D’Tigers will face Guinea on Saturday and their final group game will be played against Angola on Sunday.
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