Team USA Women’s Basketball set to face unlikely opponent in quarterfinals

The Women’s Olympic Basketball quarterfinals begin on Wednesday in Paris and an unfamiliar opponent is set to take the stage against Team USA. The Nigerian women’s team made history on Sunday by becoming the first African country to qualify for the elimination round of the Olympics on either the men’s or women’s side. 

This unprecedented run has been momentous for the country of Nigeria as well as the continent of Africa. The team has succeeded on the world stage despite extraordinary obstacles and intense turmoil, tugging at the heartstrings of both fans and casual viewers.

Their upcoming matchup has all the makings of a true David and Goliath story, as they are set to play the juggernaut of Women’s Olympic Basketball — Team USA. How the Nigerian team got to this point, however, is not so simple of a story.

The road to Paris

Women’s basketball teams from African countries have had very little success in the Olympics. And by little, I mean practically none. Nigeria’s two wins in the group phase of this year’s event doubled the total amount of wins accumulated by African women's teams in Olympic history. The lone win? Nigeria’s victory over Korea in the 11th place contest of the 2004 Athens Games. 

The team’s route to the quarterfinals this year, as expected, was anything but easy. Nigeria sat as the 12th-ranked team in the FIBA World Rankings, which made it the second-lowest-ranked team in the entire Olympic field.

They drew a loaded Group B that consisted of some of the highest-ranked teams in the world: Australia (third), Canada (fifth) and France (seventh). However, they took down Australia by double digits in their opening game before a setback against France. Then, they kept Canada down to finish off the group phase 2-1. 

This meteoric rise is especially impressive when you consider the barriers this team has overcome to get here. To begin, the team was denied entry to the opening ceremony boats by Nigerian officials, claiming there were too many people onboard. They were unable to join the nearly 100 Nigerian athletes who were already on the boat alongside Olympians from Niger and Norway, and instead, had to stay in the athlete’s village.

To make matters worse, the team had traveled from Lille, France, where the group phase games are being played, all the way to Paris, which is a two-and-a-half-hour commute. As a result of the bedlam trying to get on the boat, the team missed their opportunity to safely depart the venue in Paris later on, so they were forced to stay the night and they missed their morning practice session in Lille the following day.

Missing one practice feels like no big deal in the grand scheme of things, but this is not a seasoned team or program with a rich Olympic tradition. This is only the third time Nigeria has qualified for the Olympic Games, and they did not have the opportunity to play in the 2022 World Cup due to the Nigerian government withdrawing. 

Due to this intense fight against the corrupt control over Nigerian basketball, the team last played together in a high-level tournament during the rescheduled 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. The team went 0-3 in a helter-skelter, COVID-plagued event. 

FIBA, the world basketball governing body, considered banning the country of Nigeria from participating in global events altogether because they strictly prohibit government interference in the running of national teams. The withdrawal by the Nigerian government was intended to silence an agreement to protest made by the Nigeria men’s and women’s teams.

The protest was against the Sports Ministry and their replacement of the Nigerian Basketball Federation’s leadership. Many women’s players spoke out against this notion, stating that the government was “taking away all our future competitions, accomplishments and goals to elevate, inspire, and make Nigeria proud.”

The emotion of this team is seen in the way they play on the court. They employ an intense style of basketball with stifling defense, limiting opponents to 69 points per game, good for fourth best in the event. The team leads the Olympics in steals per game and has three of the top-10 individual steal leaders, as well as six of the top 22.

They also have offensive firepower with Ezinne Kalu, who averaged nearly twenty points per game in the group phase, landing fifth among all scorers in the Olympics thus far. 

This matchup could come down to ball security for Team USA. Nigeria’s ability to produce turnovers may cause issues for the squad, as taking care of the ball is an area of concern for the Women’s Team. They have averaged 15 turnovers per game in the Olympics, and Nigeria has forced their opponents into 25 or more turnovers on two occasions and averaging 23 per game thus far. Nigeria’s team is big as well and could match the Americans with an average height of over 6-feet tall and a handful of players around 6-foot-4.5. 

Nigeria has grown confident through what they have overcome, with star player Ezinne Kalu stating that, "I'm starting to see the light. I mean, the tunnel has been pretty dark, but I'm happy we get to see the light ... I mean, there's so much more, there's so much more to come."

Days ago, the team was denied access to the country’s boat for opening ceremonies, and now, the team now gets to travel back to the big city of Paris and play in Bercy Arena, which is mere yards from the Seine River. As enjoyable as the cultural experience will be, Kalu talked about how significant it is “to be the only African club there for basketball competing, it just really means a lot to us. And it’s something that we’re not going to take for granted.”

This team is a long shot. It may take a miracle to win, but that is exactly why they play the games. There is a lot on the line for both teams during Wednesday’s quarterfinal matchup, as Team USA looks to extend their winning streak to 59 and stay in contention for their eighth straight Gold Medal.

On the other side, Nigeria looks to build off their already monumental run and continue their trailblazing performance not only for their own country but for the entire continent.  FIBA Africa Regional Director Alphonse Bilé told the Associated Press, "We are all Africa. I can say that they don't just play for Nigeria but play for Africa."

Head coach Rene Wakama added that “I hope young girls are watching this. I wanted to be the first, but I don’t want to be the last.”