Unforgettable Dark Horse! Nigeria Women’s Basketball Eliminated Standing, Shocked USA in the Last Quarter-Final

On the early morning of August 8, the last quarter-final match of the women’s basketball at the Paris Olympic Games saw Nigeria’s women’s basketball team losing to the USA by a score of 74-88, thus failing to advance to the semi-finals. Although they didn’t progress further, the overall performance of Nigeria’s women’s basketball team throughout this Olympic Games was truly commendable, making them the biggest dark horse. Prior to the Olympics, Nigeria was consistently ranked at the bottom of the women’s basketball power rankings for two periods, and they were grouped with three strong teams – France, Australia, and Canada. Few people had high expectations for their performance. However, their performance during the group stage surprised many fans. In their first game, they won Australia by 13 points, creating the biggest upset, and securing Africa’s first victory in Olympic women’s basketball history. Although they lost heavily to France in their second game, Nigeria bounced back in their third game against Canada, defeating them despite not being favored, and finished the group stage with a record of 2 wins and 1 loss, advancing to the next round as the first African team in Olympic history to do so. In the elimination round facing the incredibly strong USA women’s basketball team, Nigeria played with great resilience, especially in the final quarter when they outscored the USA by 26-12, winning the quarter by 14 points. Such a single-quarter score is relatively uncommon for the USA women’s basketball team. Although they failed to reach the semi-finals, Nigeria’s victories over Australia and Canada to advance from the group stage, and their standing defeat in the elimination round against the USA, all attest to them being the biggest dark horse on the women’s basketball court of this Olympic Games.