D’Tigers’ Hope Dashed

Another Olympic year has come and gone in London, where the appetite for big-time international basketball was huge, both for the men’s and women’s events.

But for Nigeria’s senior men’s national team, D’Tigers, it was a tale of shattered hopes after a hopeful journey that was sowed in Venezuela, ended at the Olympic Basketball Arena in London with nothing to show for it.

The D’Tigers were the talk of the basketball world a month ago, as they booked their place at the London Games upsetting teams like Lithuania and Greece at the Olympic qualifier held in Caracas, Venezuela.

This feat generated so much talk on the home front that Nigerians had started to talk about the chances of the country winning a medal in the basketball event of the London Games.

However, the coach Ayo Bakare-tutored side got to London to realise that they could not spring the surprises that got them their first-ever ticket at the Olympics in Venezuela.

And, but for a narrow opening day win over Tunisia, Nigeria struggled to make a mark at the Games, losing their remaining four games at the tourney (against Lithuania 53-72, USA 73-156, Argentina 79-93 and against France 73-79).

Speaking on why they failed to live up to what Nigerians expect from them, veteran D’Tigers’ player Olumide Oyedeji said short time preparation affected their performance in London.

“Going for the Olympics for the first time meant so much to us but we were disappointed for not being able to rekindle the form that won us the ticket in Venezuela.

“One of the reasons we couldn’t win more than one match was lack of understanding because most of the players in the team we took to London are still very young and are playing together  for the first time.

“You have to understand that that team (Argentina) has been together for about eight to 10 years. Our team has only been together for just over a month. The future is bright if we just keep grinding, we’re going to get better,” Oyedeji told FIBA.com after their ouster.

—Bamidele Olowosagba