It was a sad end to Nigeria’s pre-Olympics qualifiers after D’Tigers lost their second consecutive game to Mali at the Eko Convention Centre, Lagos on Tuesday.
After losing their first game of the qualifiers to Senegal on Monday, Ogoh Odaudu’s side needed a win to get back on track but they failed losing 77-68 to the Malians.
Once again the team had the game in their hands but threw it away in the fourth quarter as it was against Senegal, who beat them 93-87 in their first game on Monday.
The first quarter of the game was an evenly contested encounter but Nigeria managed to win the tie 17-15.
The second quarter saw a better performance from Odaudu’s men, with Chimezie Metu leading the charge. Ike Iroegbu was also in fine form as he was almost perfect with his three-pointers as Nigeria went into halftime with a 43-38 lead.
D’Tigers picked up where they left off and were impressive as they saw the game off with a 61-53 score in the third quarter.
But despite their impressive display on the offence, their defence let them down as they struggled to contain their fellow West Africans, who clawed their way back into the game in the fourth quarter, winning 77-68.
The victory means Mali and Senegal go through to the semis as D’Tigers crashed out.
