Rena Wakama rallies D'Tigress after loss to South Korea
Head coach of Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, Rena Wakama, has called on her players to quickly move past their disappointing defeat to South Korea and shift focus to their next challenge against the Philippines at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Qualifying Tournament in Lyon, France.
Nigeria’s Nigeria women's national basketball team suffered a 77–60 loss to the Asian side on Thursday, marking the first time the Nigerian women’s team has been beaten by South Korea in international competition.
The encounter began competitively, with D’Tigress staying within striking distance during the opening two quarters.
Nigeria trailed narrowly 36–32 at halftime but struggled to maintain their rhythm after the break as South Korea gradually pulled away in the third and fourth quarters.
Despite the loss, forward Victoria Macaulay delivered another strong individual performance, recording 22 points and six rebounds after her MVP showing in Nigeria’s opening game against Colombia.
Reacting after the game, Wakama acknowledged her team’s shortcomings while crediting the Koreans for their disciplined display.
According to the coach, poor shooting and an unusual number of turnovers proved costly.
“We struggled today shooting the ball and turned it over 22 times, which is not typical of our game,” Wakama said.
“Korea is a great team and they were very physical, denying our passing lanes and doubling our players. Credit to them.”
The coach, however, insisted that the defeat would not derail the team’s mindset as they prepare for their remaining fixtures.
“Mentality wise we are fine and we are not going to overreact to the loss. There are lessons in defeats and we will take those lessons, improve and get ready for the next game,” she added.
South Korea remains in contention for one of the two available World Cup tickets from the round robin qualifiers.
Meanwhile, Nigeria and Germany have already secured qualification for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 scheduled for September in Berlin.
Both teams are participating in the qualifying tournament primarily as part of their build up for the global showpiece.
The qualifying series is being staged across four countries France, Turkey, Puerto Rico and China as national teams compete for places at the World Cup.
D’Tigress will return to action on Saturday against the Philippines before facing two tough tests against European heavyweights France and Germany in their remaining games.
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