FIBA Women’s World Cup: D’Tigress Open Campaign With Disappointing Defeat To South Korea

By Saheed Afolabi

Nigeria’s D’Tigress began their 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup campaign on a disappointing note, falling 99–81 to South Korea in Berlin on Friday.

South Korea’s sharp attacking play humbled the Africa champions throughout the contest. The Koreans stamped their dominance in the game with an early advantage, leading 26–22 at the end of the first quarter.

D’Tigress came back stronger in the second quarter as they edged the Koreans 23–22, but went into the halftime break trailing South Korea by three points 48–45.

South Korea reasserted control after the break, taking the third quarter 20–17 before producing their most decisive spell in the final period. They outscored Nigeria 31–19 in the fourth to seal an 18-point victory and open their World Cup campaign with a win.

Park Ji-hyun led all scorers with 27 points, six rebounds and six steals for South Korea. Kang Lee-seul contributed 20 points and seven assists.

For Nigeria, Amy Okonkwo topped the scoring charts with 22 points, seven rebounds and three assists, while Murjanatu Musa posted a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.

The result leaves D’Tigress with an early setback as they look to regroup quickly and focus on their remaining group-stage fixtures.