Tomi Taiwo is getting ready for the Olympics with Nigeria
From 2018 to 2022, Tomi Taiwo played for the Iowa Hawkeyes, before finishing out her college career at TCU thanks to the extra year of eligibility available to her because of the COVID-19 pandemic
she moved to Portugal to play for Esgueira
while continuing to make appearances for the Nigerian national team
helping the D’Tigress progress to the 2024 Olympics in Paris
The 5-foot-10 guard spent some time with us to talk about her unique career
We had discussions about the possibility of me playing for them during my extra year
but I had already made up my mind about transferring to another college for a different academic and basketball experience
and I saw the Covid year as an opportunity to live and experience another part of the country
I was looking for a particular Master’s program and Health Certificate combination
and it was obvious to me that TCU was the right fit
that because of the interest from many coaches from various colleges across the country
the decision was more difficult to make than l initially thought
I would like to say that l enjoyed my four years at Iowa and I am thankful for the opportunity to be part of that program
I think that the increased playing time during the extra year gave me the opportunity to really showcase my God-given basketball talent and play in a manner that those who coached me at different levels over the years knew I was capable of playing
I want to give a shout out to the coaching staff at TCU that year for believing in me and instilling a lot of confidence in me
especially considering it was my first year with the team
The basketball culture in Portugal can be characterized as physical
smaller guards and versatile posts and some very passionate fans creating an intense environment
Esgueira leads with our defense and we pride ourselves on not taking a possession off
Good ball movement is another philosophy that we try to incorporate into our games and we thrive off of our amazing fans
props to all the teams that competed in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Antwerp
It was a competitive and fun environment to play in
I think we felt confident going into our second game and we were definitely not complacent
Anything can happen in the game of basketball so playing our hardest in each competition was vital to increasing our team’s chances of qualifying
as well as a will to improve and excel from the Nigerian team in the Paris 2024 Olympics
making free throws and defensive intensity
A special thank you to Rui Mourinho, President of Esgueira Basket
no auditório do Pavilhão Multiusos de Odivelas
que contaram com a participação dos antigos internacionais portugueses Diogo Carreira e Joana Fogaça e com intervenções de Manuel Fernandes
Na Liga Betclic Masculina vão competir o SL Benfica
Vitória SC e os promovidos Esgueira Aveiro OLI e Sangalhos DC Boomerang
Já a Liga Betclic Feminina será disputada pelas seguintes equipas: SL Benfica
os promovidos Imortal Tcars e CPN Imopartner e o Olivais FC
Brevemente teremos todo o calendário disponível no nosso site.