Hungary ranked 19th in the FIBA World Rankings as against Nigeria’s 8th, upset the D’Tigresses to become the second team Saturday to produce a major upset, following Mali’s stunning takedown of Spain earlier in the day.
The Nigerian women started poorly, losing the first two quarters 13-21 and 13-15 but powered back to draw the third 16-16 before winning the last quarter at 25-19. The defeat leaves them on the third position with two points after two games.
Hungary’s last World Cup victory came all the way back in 1998, when they defeated China in the quarter-finals to advance to the semi-finals, where their run eventually came to an end.
On their return to the competition for the first time since that tournament, Hungary have their first win to celebrate.
“We have special fans,” said Reka Lelik who scored 14 points in the victory. “A lot of people came and to support us. Our game was very bad yesterday and they still supported us, so they can be a huge advantage against Korea as well.
“We had the Hungarian spirit with all those Hungarian fans being the sixth man,” Juhasz added.
Juhasz and Takacs-Kiss combined for 36 points, providing the offensive spark Hungary needed to bounce back from their heavy 99-53 defeat to France in their opening game.
D’Tigresses
“After yesterday’s disappointment we needed to be more connected and to play with more fire, more heart and that was our focus,” said Juhasz. “I am happy we kept our composure and connectivity.”
