The coach of D’Tigress, Nigeria’s female basketball national team, Rena Wakama is basking in the euphoria of her side’s opening victory at this year’s African Women’s Basketball Championship (AfroBasket 2025) in Cote d’Ivoire, but believes they will keep getting better with each game.
Sports247 reports that Wakama was delighted with the performances of her players in Saturday’s 92-45 victory over Rwanda in their first group game, especially as they recorded massive individual and collective points overall in a blowout result.
Read Also: Nigeria’s Golden Weekend: From Cardiff to Casablanca – Triumph Across Four Frontiers
The amiable tactician disclosed, “As a coach, I am pleased with our performance, in terms of strength and numbers. We had five in double figures and 37 bench points.
“We also showed that, at any point in time, anybody in the team can get hot. I’m glad that I have that ability in this team. They have a balance in scoring and balance production.”
However, despite the top marks she gave herself and her players, Wakama acknowledged the need for D’Tigress to keep improving, especially as they are embarking on a new lease of life, which she says is different from their recent competitive experiences.
She affirmed, “This is a new team. The 2023 AfroBasket team was different from the 2024 Olympic team, and the Olympic team was different from this one. So, we are still trying to figure out the kinks.
“We did that in our first game, and I was able to go deep on my bench. I played everybody, which many teams don’t do. A whole lot of other teams didn’t do that.”
Wakama concluded by expressing optimism for an even better outing in their clash with Mozambique on Monday as well as for every other game they will play in this year’s championship.
“I’m still trying to figure out our rotation. The players are also trying to figure out one another, and there are other things we have to focus on.
“We have to make improvements, and I expect that we’ll continue to get better as the tournament goes on,” Wakama projected with enthusiasm.
