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Nigeria’s D’Tigress have been eliminated from the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup after suffering a heavy 111-56 defeat to France in their final Group B game in Berlin on Monday.
The loss left the African champions bottom of the group without a win, following earlier defeats to South Korea and Hungary.
Nigeria’s exit had already been confirmed before the game after France defeated South Korea 95-69, a result that secured the French team’s place in the quarter-finals and ended D’Tigress’ chances of progressing.
France nevertheless produced a dominant performance, racing to a 31-13 lead in the opening quarter.
The European side extended its advantage in the second period, scoring 34 points while limiting Nigeria to 13 to take a 65-26 lead into half-time.
France added another 30 points in the third quarter, moving 95-39 ahead before Nigeria finished the final period with 17 points.
The French victory was also driven by a record-breaking shooting performance, with France making 22 three-pointers, the most by any team in Women’s World Cup history.
The previous record of 20 three-pointers had been set by Japan earlier in the tournament. France’s 65 points in the opening half also represented the team’s highest first-half total in a World Cup game.
Gabby Williams led the French scoring with 25 points, while Janelle Salaün contributed 19 and Marine Johannes finished with 17.
Efosa-Aguebor was Nigeria’s top scorer with 15 points.
The defeat brought an underwhelming tournament to an end for D’Tigress, who were unable to replicate the form that has established them as one of Africa’s leading women’s basketball teams.
Nigeria started the competition with an 81-99 defeat to South Korea before losing 67-71 to Hungary.
D’Tigress entered the tournament as five-time defending African champions and the highest-ranked women’s basketball team on the continent.
They had also made history at the Paris 2024 Olympics by becoming the first African team to reach the quarter-finals of the women’s basketball competition.
