LILLE (France) - France are absolutely flying at the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament Paris 2024 after they preserved their unbeaten record with a 75-54 lockdown of Nigeria.
That had the majority of the huge crowd dancing in celebration, knowing their team will be heading into the Final phase at the Bercy Arena in the capital next week.
Turning point
Nigeria had played with typical courage and on the front foot to almost keep pace with their opponents for much of the first-half.
However, the wheels came off for D'Tigress when France suffocated their offense completely and held them to single digits in the third quarter at just 8 points.
Game heroes
Gabby Williams got France rolling as usual and was outstanding with 14 points from 70% shooting, 7 assists and a super 6 steals.
Marine Johannes also showed her shooting range and kept the party going in full swing by dropping five big triples en-route to 15 points. She also dished up 5 assists.
Stats don't lie
The depth of France was simply everything in this game - at least in stark contrast to Nigeria. The difference in bench scoring was enormous with the hosts racking up 37 points and their opponents only 9.
Bottom line
France look unstoppable and podium ready - by far. Yes, it's early days but they are not only on track according to expectation, they look fully-focused and physically dominant to others. With the crowd helping to provide energy too, this two-way street is really helping them shine. Their depth, talent, athleticism and especially their defense is looking irresistible.
Nigeria simply faded after a bright start. They were impressive in the first-half but as fatigue set in, they had to work hard to limit the damage. At 1-1, they have everything to play for when they face Canada in the last Group game.
What they said
"We are expecting a lot from this team. But this wasn't an easy game for us. It was very important to get these two wins and to get to Paris. We really wanted to make sure we could get there. We want to go their and we want to finish at the top." France head coach, Jean-Aime Toupane "We didn't play our game. We were not ourselves. What helped us secure the win on Monday we didn't bring today. It's tough when you let another team shoot 63 percent inside the paint. It's hard to beat anybody. We need to get back to our ways." Nigeria head coach, Rene Wakama.
Quick notes
- France beat Nigeria with the exact same score they did against Australia in GD1 of this Olympic tournament: 75-54; France allowed fewer than 60 points in back-to-back games of the same Olympic tournament for the first time since 2000, when they conceded fewer than 60 in each of their first three games in the competition.
- Nigeria’s 54 points are their lowest in a single game at the Olympics: they have now lost three games by more than 20 points in the competition and two of those happened against France (today and in the 2020 edition (87-62). - France dished out a total of 25 assists, the most for them in a single game at the Olympics: 10 of France 12 players used in this game had, at least, an assist. - Gabby Williams combined for 14 points, five rebounds, seven assists and six steals, becoming only the third player to combine for 10+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists and 5+ steals in a game at the Olympics in the 21st century (also Angel McCoughtry for the USA v China in 2012 and Isil Alben for Turkey v Brazil in 2016). This was Williams’ second game with more than five steals in a game at the Olympics and she now joins Amaya Valdemoro (3) as the only players with multiple games with 5+ steals in the 21st century. - Marine Johannes made five 3-pointers in today’s game (5/9) while only one French player has scored more at the Olympics: Yannick Souvre made 6/8 against Brazil in 2000 – before today Johannes hadn’t scored more than two 3-pointers in a single game at the Olympics. This was also her first game with 15+ points and 5+ assists at the Olympics.
FIBA