Basketball: Nigeria’s 18-Man Squad Storm Ouagadougou

•Olumide Oyedeji, Nigerian centre

•Olumide Oyedeji, Nigerian centre

Nigeria senior men basketball team D’Tigers will travel to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso on Friday for the first leg tie against the Burkinabe in Group E double qualifiers for the 29th Afrobasket and the 11th All Africa Games.

The Nigeria’s 18-man list led by the president of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Tijjani Umar, will take on the Burkinabe on Monday, 16 March with the return leg slated for 25 March in Nigeria.

The squad are made up of 12 players with 10 of them drawn from the Nigerian DStv Premier Basketball League and two foreign based players.

Nigeria’s hope of qualifying for her 17th outing at Africa biggest basketball showpiece rest on coaches Sani Ahmed and Ayinla Johnson and 12 players who include Olumide Oyedeji (centre); Ejike Ugboaja (forward); Stanley gumut (forward); Abubakar Usman (guard); Matthew Onmonya (forward); and Ibrahim Yusuf (guard/forward) are on the team.

•Olumide Oyedeji, Nigerian centre
•Olumide Oyedeji, Nigerian centre

Other players in the squad are Adeolu Olaiya Ojo (guard); Abdulwahab Yakubu (guard); Abdulwahab Yahaya (forward); Azuoma Dike (guard); Dele Ademola (forward) and Abayomi Oyeniyi (forward). The delegation also has Muktar Khaleh, Patrick Okeke (S.G, NBBF); Patrick Omorodion (media); Dr. Ohida Suleiman (team doctor) and Dayo Ogunkunle (physio).

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According to the Head Coach Sani Ahmed, the team will not disappoint Nigerians as the players and their handlers will leave nothing to chance to ensure that they pick the sole slot in the group.

“We respect our opponents (Burkina Faso) but they are not capable of stopping us from qualifying for both the Afrobasket and the All Africa Games as we are looking forward to challenging for the Afrobasket title and also defending our All Africa Games gold medal won four years ago in Mozambique.

“The players are ready to prove that they are worthy ambassadors of Nigerian basketball, mentally, physically and psychological prepared for the two-leg qualifier,” Coach Ahmed said.

The team will fly to Lagos from their Abuja camp from where they are expected to connect an afternoon flight aboard ASky airline.

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