Joe Apu
Nigeria will no longer part take in this year’s FIBA 3×3 World Cup Qualifier in San Juan, Puerto Rico as Canada’s men have been drafted to compete in her place
According to fib.basketball.com, Nigeria withdrawal was as due to visa issues.
Nigeria’s men made history after winning the first-ever edition of the FIBA 3×3 Africa Cup in Lomé, Togo on November 3-5, 2017 and were chosen by FIBA to compete in the 2019 World Cup qualifiers. Nigeria absolutely dominated the men’s category. They didn’t just have a clean 5-0 record, they won every single one of their games before the 10-minute limit. The final against Cote d’Ivoire was no exception.
The smallest man in a green uniform (6ft 2in, 1.88m), tournament MVP Azuoma Dike had a game-high 9 points in the final, including 2 shots from outside the arc and led Nigeria to a one-sided 21-9 win. Canada will look to return to the FIBA 3×3 World Cup, one year after finishing 6th overall when they travel to Puerto Rico on May 4-5.
The squad will be placed in Men’s Pool A alongside France, Germany and Italy and will have to finish in the top 3 to advance.
The pool winners are directly qualified for the semi-finals. The teams ranked 2nd and 3rd will face the 3rd and 2nd in Pool B respectively.
The winners of the semi-finals will be qualified directly to the FIBA 3×3 World Cup 2019, while the losers will play a final game for the last spot to the competition, which will take place in Amsterdam, Netherlands on June 17-22.
