Nigeria’s Uzoh aiming for medal at Rio Olympics

SAN ANTONIO (Rio 2016 Olympics) - Nigeria will be making a second straight appearance at the Olympic Games this summer and point guard Ben Uzoh can't hide the team's ambition of winning a medal in Rio.

Back in 2012, the Nigerians stunned the basketball world by securing a historical qualification for the London Games via the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Caracas, Venezuela.

Making their Olympic debut in the British capital, the D'Tigers finished with a 1-4 mark. However, four years on, Uzoh insists they could make an impact in Brazil.

"First off, it is an honour to play and represent Nigeria on the biggest sports stage in the world. Our target will be to earn a medal," he told FIBA.com.

The 28-year-old guard explained that the team is instilling a winning mindset.

"Our group chat should be ranked No. 1 in the world. Outside of being just silly, we speak throughout the week to give each other updates, share ideas and opinions about the upcoming Olympic Games," the 1.91m guard said.

My coaches and teammates look forward to taking on the challenges along the way. - Uzoh

Their strategy paid off last August when Nigeria won a first-ever AfroBasket title in Rades, Tunisia and as a result qualified directly for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Nigeria were crowned AfroBasket 2015 champions

"Winning AfroBasket 2015 was amazing," Uzoh recalled. "Everyone, from the federation, coaches, and players sacrificed towards the goal of bringing the first AfroBasket title in our country's history. It was far from easy but most definitely worth it."

Playing in his second continental championship for Nigeria, Uzoh averaged 8.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists in six games.

The Houston native is now gearing up for new challenges.

"Being an Olympian makes me want to push my nutrition to the edge and truly take care of myself like a science project," he explained. "Since AfroBasket 2015, I have been living between California and Texas while continuing to recover from my unique health situation. I have put together a great training environment."

Nigeria have been drawn in Group B of the Rio 2016 Olympic Basketball Tournament, alongside Argentina, Spain, Brazil, Lithuania, and a team that will qualify via one of the three 2016 OQTs.

FIBA