Basketball

2020 Olympics Qualifiers: D’Tigress land in pot 3

Published

5 years ago

November 22, 2019

The senior women’s National Basketball team has been seeded in pot three alongside Japan, Brazil and Great Britain ahead of the draw ceremony for the 2020 Olympic Games Qualifying Tournament.

The team picked one of the two available slots from Africa after beating Mali in the semifinal of the FIBA Africa organized pre-qualifiers held in Maputo, Mozambique last week.

The number one rated team in Africa which got to the quarter-finals of the last World Cup in Spain will hope to join their male counterparts who had already qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Mozambique who picked the second slot from Africa have landed in pot four alongside Korea, Sweden and Puerto Rico.

World Champions, USA were seeded alongside Australia, Spain and Canada while Pot two has France, Serbia, China and Belgium.

The draws will be conducted on Wednesday, 27th of November in Switzerland with Belgium, China, France and Serbia slated to host the four OQT groups ‪between the 6th and 9th of February, 2020‬.

The last time D’Tigress qualified for the Olympics was in 2004 which was hosted in Athens, Greece

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Basketball

Bauchi FA Chairman Patrick Pascal Honoured at Be Happy Basketball Tournament

Published

2 months ago

January 21, 2025

The Gleamer

Bauchi State Football Association Chairman, Patrick Pascal, was honored at the recently concluded Be Happy Basketball Tournament in Bauchi. The annual event, sponsored by former basketball international Danjuma Maijama’a Wunti, brought together over 13 basketball teams from across Nigeria for a week of exciting competition.

The 2025 edition of the tournament saw Suns Basketball Academy of Jos emerge as champions, clinching the top prize of ₦500,000. Adamawa Stars of Yola finished second, while Mak-Town Flyers of Makurdi claimed third place, earning ₦200,000 for their efforts.

Several standout players received individual accolades:

•   Most Valuable Player (MVP): Rayyan Salis (Suns Basketball Academy, Jos).
•   Most Improved Player: Modupe Lawrence (Mak-Town Flyers, Makurdi).
•   Best Defensive Player: Thomas Abo (Mak-Town Flyers, Makurdi).
•   Highest Scorer: Rayyan Salis (Suns Basketball Academy).
•   Best 3-Point Shooter: Solomon Iliya (Be Happy Stars, Bauchi).

Teams from across Nigeria took part, including Maktown Flyers (Makurdi), Joe Geez (Jos), Adamawa Stars (Yola), Gamji (Maiduguri), Elite Basketball Club (Takum), Suns Basketball Academy (Jos), Abba Gida Gida (Kano), Katsina United (Katsina), D Block Basketball Club (Kaduna), Yankari Kings (Bauchi), The Cubs Basketball Club (Bauchi), and Be Happy Stars (Bauchi).

Speaking on his recognition, Patrick Pascal expressed gratitude to the tournament sponsor, Danjuma Maijama’a Wunti, for his commitment to youth empowerment and development through sports. He praised the players for their remarkable display of skill and teamwork throughout the competition, highlighting the event’s importance in fostering talent and unity.

The Be Happy Basketball Tournament continues to grow in stature as a major platform for discovering and nurturing basketball talent across Nigeria.

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