Cote d’Ivoire continued their hot streak as they took care of business against Nigeria, winning 77-68. Cote d’ Ivoire are yet to lose in the competition, and Nigeria lost their first game after two wins. As a result of the loss, Nigeria will need to play against the third place team of Group D in a direct knockout for a quarter-final spot.
Cote d’Ivoire took a nine points lead in the first quarter while in the second quarter, Nigeria trimmed it to just five points. In the third quarter, the Nigerians trimmed the lead to two points, but they couldn’t close the gap further as the Cote d’Ivoire defense picked up further, closing on a seven point lead. In the fourth quarter, Cote d’Ivoire extended the seven point advantage to eleven points by going on a eleven-four run as Nigerians couldn’t fill the gap till the game ended. Nisre Mimi Zouzoua emerged as the highest scorer for Cote d’Ivoire with 17 points, while for Nigeria Benjamin Emelogu clutched 13 points and 5 rebounds. Nigeria remained in foul trouble throughout the game, committing 29 of them while Cote d’Ivoire only committed 13 fouls. Cote d’Ivoire also outrebounded Nigeria massively with a 44-30 advantage.