YAOUNDE (AfroBasket Women 2015) - Nigeria and Angola will do battle for Third Place at the AfroBasket Women on Saturday in Cameroon with a spot in the FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament (WOQT) at stake.

Although reigning champions Angola beat Nigeria 57-51 in the Group Phase, Nigeria enter the contest as favourites because athleticism numerous scoring options.

Adaora Elonu (NGR)

Adaora Elonu, who finished with a single point against Angola in the Group Phase, has stepped up her game and is playing at her very best.

She should be pivotal for the Nigerians, who are coached by Scott Nnaji.

For Angola, power forward Nadir Manuel is the team's leader in points and rebounding and is among the top performers in the tournament, yet she lacks support.

If Luisa Tomas improves, it would make a big difference for Angola but she has struggled at both ends of the floor.

Nadir Manuel (ANG)

Elonu and Manuel should be crucial for their respective teams in the contest.

Nigeria hold tournament highs in points scored and well as rebounding.

They entered their Semi-Final against hosts Cameroon as favourites but a series of mistakes in crucial moments of the game ended their chances of reaching the Final for the second time since 2005, when they last won the tournament as hosts.  

While the winner of AfroBasket Women 2015 secures direct qualification for next year's Olympics, the teams that finish second and third will be invited to take part at WOQT.

Nigeria reached the last four with a 4-1 mark and were full of optimism but the defeat to Cameroon was hugely deflating. It remains to be seen how they react against an Angolan team which is looking at finishing on the podium for the fifth time in a row.

Angola arrived in Yaounde with a dilemma at the point guard position.

They expected to have US-born Italee Lucas, who lives and plays in Angola and acquired Angolan citizenship but a FIBA ruling left her out of the competition, and Isabel Francisco has taken over the playmaking role.

Angola's strongest point is their never-die spirit. They trailed by as many 15 points against Senegal in their Semi-Final and almost had the comeback of the tournament as they tied the contest at 54 with 30 seconds remaining.

However, they put Astou Traore on the free-throw line and she closed out the game in the final nine seconds.

While Nigeria tend to share the ball better and dominate the game in the paint, the Angolans usually play aggressive defense and compete until the last second.

Tune in to LiveBasketball.TV (registration and subscription required) to watch the Third-Place Game and Final of the tournament live.  

FIBA