The Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Hon. Bukola Olopade, has urged Nigeria’s Senior Men’s Basketball Team, D’Tigers to make the country proud at the final window of the Afrobasket Qualifiers in Libya......CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE>>>>>
Nigeria will take on Cape Verde and Uganda in the first round as they seek to seal a place in the tournament.
D’Tigers must win at least two of their three games to stand a chance to qualify for the tournament.
Olopade has urged the team to make Nigeria proud in Libya by qualifying for the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket.
He said: “I am sure the NBBF and the coaching crew have selected a very strong and technically balanced squad for the country, blending both foreign-based and home-based players.
“Basketball is one of our traditional sports as a country, and we have had tremendous success over the years. It is, therefore, essential to continue giving it the attention it deserves from the Commission.
He also emphasized the NSC’s broader commitment to developing all sports, under the leadership of Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko.
“At the Commission, I want to reiterate that the Chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, and I are fully committed to the growth of all sports, and we will continue to exemplify this through proper preparations for all our national teams at international competitions.”
“There has been a paradigm shift since the rebirth of the Sports Commission, with detailed attention given to every sport. We demonstrated this with cricket when our U-19 girls played at the World Cup in Malaysia earlier this year and, more recently, with badminton at the All Africa Championship in Cameroon, among others.”
The DG also called on Nigerians to rally behind D’Tigers, expressing confidence in the team’s ability to embody the competitive spirit that defines Nigerian sports.
Nigeria’s final 12-man squad for the qualifiers in Tripoli will be led by two Olympians—Caleb Agada and team captain Ike Nwamu—as they battle for a place in the Afrobasket tournament.
The tournament is set to take place in Tripoli, Libya, from 21 to 23 February 2025.