28th August, 2017
A basketball fan in Ebonyi, Judith Nwolisa, has named her newborn baby girl, Evelyn, after D’Tigress star player, Evelyn Akhator to celebrate the team’s 2017 Women Afrobasket triumph in Mali.
The Nigerian female basketball team defeated arch rivals Senegal 65-48 in the competitions final on Sunday’.
The team won all its matches en route the final, including a group game victory over Senegal and has also qualified to represent the continent alongside Senegal at the 2018 World Championships in Spain.
Nwolisa, a basketball player and youth activist, told NAN at her residence in Abakaliki that the D’Tigress victory made it double celebration for her having given birth to the baby girl last Friday.
“I was still celebrating the birth of my new baby when the team won the Afrobasket competition on Sunday and I felt the best way to appreciate them is to name the child after its star player, Evelyn Akhator.
“I am a fan of the Dallas Wing of U.S. player and also monitors her performances alongside other U.S.-based stars such as Ezinne Kalu (Savannah State University) and Ndidi Madu (University of Florida) among others.
“I am impressed with the performances of these players, especially Evelyn. I will encourage my child to play basketball to become a champion and an established star like her,’’ she said.
Nwaolisa commended the team’s Coach, Sam Vincent, for effectively blending the locally based players with the overseas-based ones and psyching them to become champions.
“The team lifted its game above their performance which fetched them third place in the competition’s last edition, approaching its game as the final.
“The team also put aside the distraction of funding which affected its preparations and the crisis which engulfed the leadership of the Nigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF) after its board elections,’’ she said.
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She called on the parties in the NBBF crisis that created factions to use the opportunity provided by the triumph to sheathe their swords and work to uplift the game.
“The federation should increase its grassroots development programmes to discover new talents who will complement the efforts of these established stars and replace them when inactive.
“The relevant stakeholders should also use the victory to ensure more girl-participation in the sport through developmental programmes in schools, academies and clubs among other areas,’’ she said.
Nwaloisa, however, urged the Super Eagles to emulate the D’Tigress and approach its double-header World Cup qualifier against Cameroon with determination and a conquering spirit.
“The D’Tigress had to shove the influence of more fancied opponents such as Angola and Senegal to win the competition and the Eagles should also rise above Cameroon’s present status in continental soccer,’’ she said.