Wakama hails Hungary after D’Tigress second W’Cup defeat

D’Tigress head coach Rena Wakama blamed her side’s poor start and missed opportunities for their 71-67 defeat to Hungary at the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin on Saturday.

Nigeria struggled to find their rhythm early in the game and were also wasteful from the free-throw line, converting only 12 of 23 attempts as Hungary held on for their first Women’s World Cup victory in 28 years.

“It is tough when your shots weren’t falling. I thought we had great looks in the first half, really good looks. We got to the free-throw line but finished the game shooting 12-23 from the free-throw line. We just weren’t able to get it done today,” Wakama said.

Hungary took a 21-13 lead after the first quarter and extended it to 36-26 at half-time, before Nigeria improved after the break and mounted a late comeback.

Wakama praised Hungary’s performance but challenged her players to improve their starts after they were again forced to chase the game from the opening quarter.

“They are a good team, they shot 51 per cent from the floor, they have great size, so that caused some issues for us, but they were playing super-connected basketball and they stuck to their game plan,” she said.

“My challenge for the team is start the game like it is everything. Our starts haven’t been that great. We are getting better, it is just finding our rhythm and finding our flow.”

D’Tigress outscored Hungary 25-19 in the final quarter, with Elizabeth Balogun’s late lay-up reducing the deficit to two points, but Reka Lelik converted two crucial free throws to seal the victory.

The defeat was Nigeria’s second in as many games at the tournament, following their 99-81 loss to South Korea in their opening Group B fixture.

Captain Amy Okonkwo acknowledged Hungary’s dominance on the boards and their ability to establish their rhythm, but remained confident that D’Tigress can rediscover their best form.

“Hungary played very well, they out-rebounded us by a lot. They had their rhythm and we were trying to find our rhythm. I think we were able to find a glimpse of it towards the end but we weren’t able to come through with the win,” Okonkwo said.

“I still believe we have the spark in us. It just needs to translate on the floor and we can find it within ourselves and stay connected.”

Okonkwo led Nigeria with 17 points and six rebounds, while Balogun scored 13 points and Ezinne Kalu added 11 points and nine assists.

D’Tigress will face France in their final Group B game on Monday, with Wakama’s side still searching for their first victory of the tournament.