Nigeria’s D’Tigress put up a good fight but were ultimately beaten by Germany in a warm-up game ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics, Punch Sports Extra reports.
The African champions, ranked 12th globally by FIBA, lost to the 19th-ranked Germany in the preparation game played at the UBER Arena in Berlin on Friday as the game finished 77-63 in favour of the Germans.
D’Tigress, who have won a record four consecutive Women’s AfroBasket titles, are in a tough group for the Olympics. They are up against Canada, Australia and France in Group B of the women’s basketball event.
The African giants begin their quest against familiar foes Australia on July 29, having always struggled against the Aussies in competitive clashes.
Australia are ranked No.3 in the world, with Canada fifth and France seventh, all above Nigeria.
The African champions are poised for a second consecutive appearance after participating in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The upcoming Women’s Olympic Basketball Tournament will see Nigeria looking to land a surprise blow in the Group phase and claim their first-ever win at the event.
D’Tigress are yet to register a win in the competition since they made their Olympic bow at the Athens edition of the Games in 2004, when they lost all five games and conceded over 400 points.
At Tokyo 2020, they were defeated 87-62 by France in their first game before further loses to the US (81-72) and Japan (102-83) respectively.
Despite failing to secure a win in Tokyo, they impressed with their performances sparking hope of a bright future.