Nigeria’s male senior basketball team D’Tigers have conquered the fear of missing out on this year’s FIBA AfroBasket championship after they were declared ‘qualified’ for the tournament before their last qualifying match against Cape Verde on Sunday.

D’Tigers were billed to face Group B leaders Cape Verde in their last game of the second phase of the qualifier on Sunday evening, needing another win to boost their chances.

According to FIBA, regardless of how they finish the qualifiers, all the countries in Group B which comprises leaders Cape Verde, Libya, Nigeria and Uganda will qualify for the tournament in Angola as the best fourth-placed team.

“The team that will finish fourth in this group will qualify as the best-fourth team of the AfroBasket qualifiers,” FIBA wrote in their preview of the last match-day on Sunday.

Not buoyed by the verdict, the D’Tigers took their destiny into their own hands and beat Cape Verde 77-62 to end their run in the second qualifying window perfectly.

After making a mess of their first phase of the qualifiers last year – where they lost all three matches – D’Tigers have been on a redemption mission in Libya, winning their first two games emphatically.

They began by beating hosts Libya 75-70 in their opening game on Friday and also recovered from a halftime deficit to record their second consecutive victory in the final qualifying window with a resounding 87-67 win over Uganda in their second Group B qualifier in Tripoli on Saturday.

They had moved within one victory of qualifying for the 2025 AfroBasket finals before FIBA announced they would be in the tournament regardless of the outcome of their game against Cape Verde.

The Nigeria’s male senior basketball team haven’t missed the last 10 editions of the tournament and will hope to win a second continental title in Angola from August 12 to 24.

Nigeria’s only AfroBasket title was won in 2015 plus four silver medals and three bronze medals.

Credit: punchng.com

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