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D'Tigress coach Rena Wakama celebrates Afrobasket history as Amy Okonkwo wins MVP.
Nigeria defeated Senegal 84-74 on Saturday in Kigali, Rwanda, to become the first team in the previous 40 years to win four straight FIBA Women's AfroBasket championships.
Senegal was the final team to win four African championships in the 1970s before Nigeria.
Exactly 20 years have passed since D'Tigresses won their first African championship in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2003.
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The D'Tigresses of Nigeria not only won the African title for the fourth time in a row, but they also went undefeated (5-0) this year, extending their continental winning streak to 24-0, dating back to the Women's AfroBasket Third-Place game in Yaounde in 2015.
Amy Okonkwo Afrobasket MVP
Amy Okonkwo, 26, was voted the MVP of the competition since she significantly contributed to Nigeria winning the 2023 FIBA Women's AfroBasket.
The All-Tournament team also included Cierra Dillard (Senegal), Jannon Otto (Uganda), Sika Kone (Mali), and Tamara Seda (Mozambique), with Okonkwo.
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Okonkwo, who averaged a team-high 17.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game for the D'Tigresses during Nigeria's undefeated streak (5-0) in the Rwandan capital of Kigali, emerged as the team's driving force.
Speaking after the game Okonkwo said, "We have a coach that believes in us. It has us fighting till the end, even in adversity.
"So we knew we had our destiny in our hands. Even when Senegal came back, we knew we had to step up, to keep together and we made it happen.
"I was playing in Mexico this summer, and I’m thankful to have the opportunity to come and lead. And I had the opportunity to lead the team.
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"I told to myself that I was not coming to Kigali to lose anything. And being MVP is a huge honor."
Rena Wakama on Afrobasket title
Rena Wakama was appointed Head Coach of D'Tigress just weeks before the start of the tournament.
Speaking after the title she said, "Against Mozambique, we were down by 10 or 12 points. I looked into their eyes, and they told me: “Coach, we're not going to lose this game..”.. And they came back to win.
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"That was the defining moment for me. It has been a long year for me. I asked God for a sign, and this trophy was the biggest of them all.” - Rena Wakama, Nigeria head coach.
Rena Wakama is the first female head coach to win a Women's AfroBasket championship thanks to Nigeria's success.
She is now expected to lead D'Tigress to the pre-Olympic qualifiers next year.
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