U18 AfroBasket: D'Tigress Beat Tunisia as D'Tigers Lose to Egypt

Posted : 07 August 2026

Nigeria's U18 women's team, the D'Tigress, began their 2026 FIBA U18 AfroBasket Championship campaign with a hard-fought 54-50 victory over Tunisia, while the U18 D'Tigers fell 95-68 to Egypt in their opening Group A fixture.

The U18 D'Tigress showed resilience to claim victory in their Group C opener at the Salle Polyvalente in Treichville, Côte d'Ivoire. Nigeria trailed 15-13 after the first quarter but fought back in the second, outscoring Tunisia 14-10 to take a narrow 27-25 lead into half-time.

Tunisia regained control in the third quarter after winning the period 19-16, setting up a closely contested final quarter. However, Nigeria produced an impressive defensive display in the closing minutes, limiting Tunisia to just six points while scoring 11 to seal a valuable opening victory.

Favour Joy Anari delivered an outstanding all-round performance for Nigeria. She finished with a game-high 14 points, nine rebounds, five assists and six steals to lead the D'Tigress to victory.

Khadijah Alli added nine points, while Bisola Arowolo contributed eight points. Nimah Ibidunni made an important impact from the bench with seven points and five rebounds.

Although Nigeria struggled offensively and shot just 23.8 percent from the field, they dominated the rebounding battle 52-48. The D'Tigress also forced 33 turnovers and converted those mistakes into 20 points, proving decisive in the tightly contested encounter.

In the men's competition, the U18 D'Tigers were outclassed by Egypt in their Group A opener at the Palais des Sports de Treichville.

Egypt raced into an early lead by winning the opening quarter 32-23 before extending their advantage to 56-43 at the break. The North Africans remained firmly in control throughout the second half, taking the third quarter 23-12 before completing a convincing 95-68 victory.

Victor Emeka Nwafor led Nigeria's scoring with 16 points. Victor Endurance Sunday added 15 points, nine rebounds and four assists, while Isaiah John also reached double figures with 14 points.

Egypt's strength in depth proved decisive, with six players scoring in double figures. Seifalla Ahmed led the winners with 16 points and seven rebounds, while Rami Magdy contributed 17 points. Egypt also dominated the rebounds 52-42, recorded 29 assists compared to Nigeria's 12 and received 50 points from their bench.

Both Nigerian teams return to action on August 7. The U18 D'Tigress will face Cameroon in Group C, while the U18 D'Tigers will attempt to bounce back against Chad in Group A.

U18 AfroBasket: D'Tigress Beat Tunisia as D'Tigers Lose to Egypt

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