Preview: Who's heading past the Group Stages in Nigeria?

LAGOS (Nigeria) - The 2024 Olympics dream is still alive for eight African countries vying to make it Paris, but first they have the 2023 Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament test to pass in Lagos.

We're all excited to see what might happen in Nigeria's largest city, where the winner of the tournament will advance to the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments next year. 

Group A - Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Uganda

Who's the favorite​?

If recent history is anything to go by and considering how meaningful playing in front of their home fans is for Nigeria, then there is no question as to who the number one team in the group is.

When Nigeria played hosts of Window 4 of the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup African Qualifiers at the National Stadium in Lagos, D'Tigers lived up to expectations and protected their home court in style. It was a special occasion for Nigeria, who played official games at home for the first time in more than two decades. 

Fans flocked into the National Stadium; some of Nigeria's finest players showed up and the outcome was a perfect 3-0 thanks to wins over Cote d'Ivoire, Central African Republic and Senegal.

Who's the underdog​?

A quick look into the history books shows that Uganda are familiar to Mali, Nigeria and Senegal, and the results have been anything but rosy for the East Africans.

Over the past four years, the Silverbacks lost to Mali and Nigeria twice during the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup African Qualifiers and lost to Senegal at the 2021 FIBA AfroBasket. Although in one of their most famous wins, Uganda stunned Nigeria 80-68 in the Classification to the Quarter-Finals of the 2021 African Championship in Kigali.

What will be the pivotal game​?

This is the so-called 'Group of Death', and, whoever wins the clash between Nigeria and Senegal is likely to reach the Final. This is a match-up between Africa's number one team in Nigeria and the continent's third team in Senegal. So, expect a dogfight between two teams vying to stay in contention for a spot at the 2024 Paris Games. 

The open question: Is the Lagos home floor going to make a difference?

The event is likely to be Nigeria's last resort to correct their wrongs from the 2023 World African Qualifiers and reconnect with their home fans. No other result is expected from Nigeria other than winning it all.

Group B - Cameroon, Congo DR, Guinea, Tunisia

Who's the favorite​?

There is a popular basketball saying that the heart of champions shouldn't be underestimated, and, despite facing some ups and downs in recent times, Tunisia are still the reigning African champs. So, they will do everything in their power to live to expectations. 

However, just for the improvement they showed in the last window of the 2023 World Cup African Qualifiers, Cameroon really can't be be taken lightly in this pool.

Who's the underdog​?

On paper, Guinea look the group's outsider for being the lowest-ranked team in the tournament at number 13.

However, they climbed the most places (plus 10) than any other African team in the FIBA World Rankings presented by NIKE update on February 27 earlier this year. They have shown they can compete against other teams on the Continent and especially if they are able to select some of their foreign-based players.

What will be the pivotal game​?

Although it's yet to be classed as one of the highly anticipated match-ups in African basketball, Cameroon versus Tunisia is one the clashes to keep an eye on in Lagos.

When they faced off in the 2019 and 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup African Qualifiers, the former prevailed by small winning margin in one of the most evenly-matched games in recent times on the continent. 

The open question: Can Cameroon finally beat Tunisia?

 
A closer look into the history of the games between Cameroon and Tunisia shows that Cameroon have had several opportunities to beat Tunisia, but, somehow, they ended up shooting themselves in the foot in critical moments. Tunisia currently hold a 4-0 head-to-head advantage - so is it now Cameroon's time to belatedly get a win on the board against their rivals?

FIBA