US tour: Minnesota Lynx hand D’Tigress second straight defeat 

D’Tigress suffered a second consecutive defeat on their United States tour after losing 88-79 to the Minnesota Lynx in a competitive contest at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City on Tuesday.

Playing under assistant coach Wani Muganguzi in the absence of head coach Rena Wakama, who is on WNBA duty with the Chicago Sky, the Nigerian side showed clear improvement from their opening 89-63 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks.

D’Tigress started strongly with Promise Amukamara, Ezinne Kalu, Suzie Rafiu, Uche Izoje and Pallas Kunaiyi-Akpanah matching Minnesota’s tempo in a fast-paced opening quarter that ended 27-26 in favour of the Lynx.

The contest remained tight through the first half, with Minnesota edging the second quarter 19-17 to take a 46-43 lead into the break.

The Lynx gradually pulled away in the third quarter, winning it 21-16 before sealing victory by outscoring Nigeria 21-20 in the final period.

Ezinne Kalu led Nigeria’s scoring with 25 points in a strong offensive display, while Gabby White added 16 points and continued to impress in her growing role within the team.

Kunaiyi-Akpanah contributed 11 points, while Izoje added eight as D’Tigress showed better balance in attack.

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The African champions recorded 36 rebounds compared to Minnesota’s 25 and also led steals 8-5, but lower shooting efficiency proved costly.

Nigeria converted 40 per cent of their field goals against the Lynx’s 50 per cent and also trailed in assists by 23-11.

Both teams finished with 32 points in the paint, but Minnesota made better use of fast-break chances, scoring 13 points to Nigeria’s seven.

The game featured six lead changes and was tied five times, although Minnesota’s biggest lead of 15 points proved enough to decide the result.

Courtney Williams led the Lynx with 17 points, while the hosts also benefited from 43 bench points compared to Nigeria’s 28.

Despite the defeat, D’Tigress showed encouraging signs with a youthful and experimental squad assembled as part of a rebuilding process.

The 21-player camp roster includes 15 players from 14 NCAA programmes as the Nigeria Basketball Federation works to build depth ahead of future competitions.

The tour is part of preparations for the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin in September, where Nigeria will compete in Group B alongside France, South Korea and Hungary.

With one game left in the three-match series, D’Tigress will face the Indiana Fever on Saturday midnight as the coaching crew continues to assess combinations and tactical cohesion against elite WNBA opposition.

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