Nigeria made Olympic history by turning into the principal African group, male or female, to arrive at the Olympic quarterfinals in b-ball when it beat Canada 79-70 on Sunday. Ezinne Kalu scored 21 focuses and made the group’s way into the quaterfinals.
The Nigerians (2-1) came into the 2004 Athens Games with only one victory, but now they are staying longer at the Olympics than ever before. Their quarterfinal rival is the US, which is going for an eighth back to back gold decoration.
The following rival didn’t make any difference after the success over Canada.
An assistant coach used her phone to capture the moment as Kalu and her teammates began to celebrate at midcourt. After greeting the Canadians with a high five, the Nigerians resumed their celebration with a midcourt huddle.
An associate mentor got a banner from a fan for photographs on the court, and the Nigerians took as much time as is needed embracing and modeling for more photographs as they enjoyed the experience. Canada, positioned fifth on the planet, departs winless in three games, killed on the last day of gathering play for ladies’ ball by a group positioned twelfth.
On Sunday night, Australia defeated France by a score of 79-72 in the group play finale. The Opals (2-1) secured their eighth and final quarterfinal berth, avoiding elimination in front of a 27,193-person crowd that, according to FIBA, set a record for European women’s basketball attendance.
Following the announcement of the draw on Sunday night, the Australians will face Serbia in the first quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday. Spain will take on Belgium, France, Germany, the United States, and Nigeria, respectively.
The United States, Spain, Serbia, France, and Germany were the other four nations that had secured spots prior to the final day. Australia, Nigeria, and Belgium won on Sunday.
Nigeria lost in Tokyo and did not qualify for the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016. This women’s team will now play on Wednesday in Bercy Arena, which is located on the Seine River and was denied access to Nigeria’s boat for the opening ceremony on July 26.
The first six points were scored by Nigeria. Skipper Amy Okonkwo hurt her right shoulder from the get-go in the subsequent quarter, crashing into Canada forward Aaliyah Edwards while jumping for a free ball, and Canada took a 41-37 lead into halftime
Okonkwo returned for the second from last quarter, when Nigeria opened with a 13-1 run. The Nigerians outscored Canada 23-5 in the third and took a 60-46 lead into the fourth.
