TheCable

Sam Vincent, coach of D’Tigress, on Wednesday said the team is confident and ready to excel at the 2017 Women’s Afrobasket Championship in Mali.

The female national team will be making its 10th appearance at the Biennial African basketball championships.

The 12-team tournament will dunk-off in Bamako, Mali from August 18-27.

D’Tigress had won the tournament in 2003 and 2005, but the team came third in the 2015 edition which held in Yaounde, Cameroon.

Speaking on the team’s preparedness and expectation, Vincent told NAN that they had all it takes to emerge champions once more.

“We played in the same tournament last year and we are more experienced and better bonded,” he said. “We have what it takes to win the cup, in fact; we are coming home with it.

“The players have brought a lot of wisdom and experience to the team; they understand each other and play well. They are talented and skillful as well.

“We now have a blend of skills, talents and experience, so nobody is an exception, we play as a team and as a family; everybody to her role and well complemented.

“We have the right recipe to win our matches and the girls are raring to go. Those that made the team are strong, confident and positive about winning the competition,’’ he said.

The American-born coach said even though the team would meet tough oppositions, he believes D’Tigress would be up to the task.

“Senegal is the defending champion and a 12-time champion; nevertheless, they are the one to be scared of us not the other way round. We know it is going to be tough,” he said.

“We also have other tough oppositions like our first game against Mozambique; Mali will also be a tough opposition because they are the host; so also Angola.

“I have confidence in the players’ ability and ruggedness because we have prepared enough to feature a conquering team.

“We have all come this far by staying together, training together and facing our challenges together. With all these we should be able to win the cup.”

Vincent said Nigeria has what it takes to be Africa’s best with a short term plan for the players and the coaching crew.

He said: “Nigeria can still match up with Senegal that has won the championships 12 times with a short term plan of about a year.

“We don’t need to have a long term plan before we can be first in Africa; we just need to create the atmosphere to encourage early preparations towards the competitions.

“We also need youth developmental programmes to take care of the ageing players. With a 12-month plan, we can catch up with those countries.

“I must also commend the new executive under the leadership of the NBBF President, Musa Kida, who is passionate about grassroots development of the game.”