AFCON 2025
Nigeria have yet to produce the level of intensity Wakama wants from the opening minutes of their games, prompting the coach to challenge her players to approach the start of each match with greater urgency.
D’Tigress head coach Rena Wakama has called on her players to improve their starts as Nigeria continue their Group B campaign at the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin.
“My challenge for the team is to start the game like it is everything. Our starts haven’t been that great,” Wakama said.
The call for improvement comes as D’Tigress continue to find their rhythm at the tournament, having already shown progress in one area that troubled them in their opening game — turnovers.
Nigeria committed 23 turnovers in their 99-81 defeat to South Korea, while their opponents had just 10. Wakama subsequently challenged her players to improve their decision-making and execution.
The response was immediate, with D’Tigress cutting their turnovers to 11 in their next game.
“I challenged them last night about the turnovers and today we only had 11,” Wakama said.
While Nigeria are yet to hit their best level consistently, Wakama believes the improvement is evidence that the team is gradually finding its rhythm.
“We are getting better, it is just finding our rhythm and finding our flow,” she added.
The coach will now expect further progress when D’Tigress face France in their next Group B fixture, with a stronger opening and continued discipline in possession likely to be key to Nigeria’s performance.
For Wakama and her players, the focus is now on turning those improvements into a more complete performance as the World Cup campaign continues.
