The United States claimed their unprecedented third straight title after powering past Australia 73-56 in the final of 2018 FIBA Women’s World Cup on Sunday.
It was the 10th time for the basketball powerhouse to stand atop the podium of the tournament since its inauguration in 1953, with the name of Basketball World Championship for Women prior to the 2018 edition.
Sunday’s victory was also the 22 straight for the U.S. as their most recent loss dated back to the semifinals in 2006.
Spain bagged the bronze medal after beating debutantes Belgium 67-60 earlier on Sunday.
Nigeria’s D’Tigress, meanwhile, finished eight having lost the classification battle by a slim 73 -72 points to Canada.
Congratulating the Nigerian side for a job well done, Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung said the team displayed a high sense of patriotism, determination and hard work during the competition.
“On behalf of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and President Muhammadu Buhari, I congratulate you on your excellent outing in Spain.
You have shown that you’re now a strong force in basketball not only in Africa but now globally.
“I want to commend the leadership of the Nigeria Basketball Federation led by Engineer Musa Kida for their investment of time and resources in the team which yielded this unprecedented result in basketball.
This has shown that our insistence that stakeholders be allowed to run their game was not to witch-hunt anyone but to ensure that Stakeholders own their game.”
He thanked the players and the technical crew for their dedication and resilience in the face of stiff opposition.
“The players and technical crew showed an unprecedented level of dedication and never say die spirit during their crucial matches against Turkey, Greece and Argentina.
You have emerged the first African team to play in the World Cup quarterfinals and its something you should be proud of.
Your ranking has also catapulted from 34th to eighth.”
