Nigeria’s Junior D’Tigress fell to a 79-61 defeat against Portugal in their final Group B game at the ongoing 2025 FIBA U-19 Women’s World Cup in Brno, Czech Republic.
With this loss, Nigeria officially finished third in the group, while Portugal secured second place. Both teams, however, managed to avoid a round of 16 clash with tournament favorites, the United States.
Portugal set the tone early, outscoring Nigeria 17-13 in the first quarter and 19-14 in the second, to take a nine-point lead into halftime at 36-27.
Nigeria showed more aggression in the third quarter and matched Portugal 16-16, but the Europeans pulled away decisively in the final period, outscoring the Junior D’Tigress 25-16 to seal an 18-point win.
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On a day when most of the Nigerian players struggled to find their rhythm, Idubamo Beggi stood out, finishing with a game-high 17 points, six assists, a game-high four steals, and two rebounds. Tobbend Weke also impressed with 16 points, while More Ezike contributed nine points and eight rebounds.
Portugal’s Clara Silver was named the Most Valuable Player, registering a double-double of 17 points and 14 rebounds to lead her side to their second win of the tournament in their debut campaign. Leonor Peixinho added 16 points, Marta Rodrigues had 14, and Maria Andorinha chipped in 11 points.
Nigeria struggled with their shooting, making just 18 of 57 attempts from the field (31.6%) and converting only 61% of their free throws. The team also turned the ball over 20 times.
The Junior D’Tigress will now face either Israel or Hungary in the round of 16.
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