D’Tigress Seek World Cup Consolation Against France

Nigeria’s D’Tigress will battle France on Monday as they seek to end their 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup campaign on a positive note after suffering two consecutive defeats.

The Nigerian women opened their Group B campaign with a 99-81 loss to South Korea before falling 71-67 to Hungary on Saturday. The defeats ended their hopes of advancing from the group, leaving the encounter with France as an opportunity to restore some pride.

The game presents another difficult test for D’Tigress, with France entering the contest as one of the strongest teams in the group. Nigeria will need a much-improved performance after struggling with consistency and execution in their opening two matches.

Against Hungary, D’Tigress remained competitive for long periods but were unable to convert key opportunities when they mattered most. Their opening defeat to South Korea was more decisive, with Nigeria conceding heavily and struggling to maintain offensive efficiency.

Head coach Rena Wakama will be hoping her players can produce a disciplined performance against France despite having little at stake in terms of qualification.

Questions have also emerged about Nigeria’s preparation for the tournament, particularly Wakama’s limited involvement in the build-up because of her commitments with WNBA side Chicago Sky.

Wakama missed Nigeria’s United States tour, with assistant coach Wani Muganguzi overseeing the team during preparatory games against the Los Angeles Sparks and Minnesota Lynx. D’Tigress subsequently continued preparations in China and Spain before arriving in Germany.

Wakama only joined the team shortly before the opening game, a situation that has drawn attention following Nigeria’s difficult start to the competition.

After the loss to South Korea, Wakama acknowledged that Nigeria had created opportunities but failed to convert enough of them, including from the free-throw line.

Against France, D’Tigress will look to improve their shooting, defensive organisation and overall execution as they attempt to sign off from the World Cup with a victory.