Wakama admits D'Tigress are rebuilding heavy defeat to France
Nigeria’s D’Tigress head coach Rena Wakama has admitted that the team is going through a rebuilding phase after suffering a heavy 111-56 defeat to France at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup.
The loss exposed the gap between the current Nigerian side and one of the tournament’s top teams, but Wakama believes the result is part of a bigger process as D’Tigress work to establish a new identity.
“The reality of where we are today is that we are in a rebuilding process,” Wakama said.
“For myself, my team and my staff, connectivity is a big thing. We can’t rely on the success we had two years ago. Who we are today, we are still figuring that out, and I know we will.”
Despite the one-sided result, Wakama found positives in the performances of some of Nigeria’s younger players, particularly Grace Efosa-Aguebor and Maryam Dauda.
Efosa-Aguebor made the most of her opportunity, playing around 20 minutes and finishing with 15 points, while Dauda also impressed as the coach handed her young players valuable experience against a strong French side.
“I am most proud of our fight. I was super proud of the fight specifically even today,” Wakama added.
“Grace Efosa played about 20 minutes and gave us 15 points. Maryam, these are names you guys will hear in the future. I threw my young ones in the fire and they responded for me, so I am super proud of them.”
With the 2028 Olympic Games already on the horizon, Wakama believes Nigeria’s rebuilding project must be backed by better talent identification and even more thorough preparation.
She stressed the need to continually bring the best players available to the national team while raising the standard of their preparations.
“I think it starts with who we’re getting in these uniforms, just making sure that I’m continuing to put the best talent that Nigeria has to offer in these uniforms, and it comes with preparations,” she said.
“We had a great preparation, but I think there’s another level we have to get to in these preparations.”
For Wakama, the defeat to France may have been painful, but it also offered a glimpse into the future of D’Tigress, with the emergence of younger players providing hope as Nigeria begins the task of building its next generation.
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