Joe Apu
Nigeria women’s national team, D’Tigress will today seek to cement her place for the basketball event of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games when they take on host Serbia in the second game of the FIBA Women Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
With a convincing 85-51victory on Thursday over fellow African side, Mozambique, in Game one, Nigeria would secure an Olympic ticket with a win over Serbia who are looking for return to the Olympics after their 2016 appearance in Rio.
However, Serbia are leaving no stone unturned in their quest despite losing 69-88 to Team USA in the first game. If in the event of a defeat, Nigeria would also qualify with a defeat of no more than 33 points if USA defeats Mozambique.
Serbian national team leader Sonja Vasic says Serbia will give her best to make history and take on Nigeria with everything.
“Qualifying is another major goal for us. The medals are great but it is really about the pride we would have from getting continuity and qualifying for another Olympic Games.”
She continued: “Every year we continue to build the legacy for Serbian women’s basketball and we don’t want to miss out on any big events.
“Quality-wise, we don’t have the roster of some other countries, but we have the chemistry and we trust in each other – something which can be just as important.
She explained: “For us it is a huge deal playing at home and especially because of the fact we are getting a lot of support from the fans and from an organization and travelling perspective, everything has been much easier.
“Even if everyone else thinks it is already done and we are already there. We have our feet on the ground and mentally, we are aiming to stay in control and don’t see ourselves as already in Tokyo. We have to be focused completely on the Nigeria and Mozambique games.”