PARIS (France) - Host nation France impressed in the Quarter-Finals of the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament Paris 2024 as they ended the fairytale run of first-timers Germany with an 84-71 triumph.
France had too much in their locker for their opponents who were below the level they had previously shown in Lille when taking their first ever footsteps in the competition.
The victory sets up a mouth-watering Semi-Finals meeting between France and neighbors Belgium, who took down Spain earlier in the day.
Turning point
Ahead by a modest 23-19 after the first quarter, France then erupted with a 17-5 run at the start of the second period and left Germany trailing in their wake.
Game heroes
Marine Johannes stepped off the bench and dropped a team-high and a new personal-high with France 24 points, while the ever effective Gabby Williams continued to shine with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
Nyara Sabally was unfortunate to be on the losing side after posting 20 points and 13 boards in defeat on her return from injury.
Stats don't lie
Germany threw the ball over time and time again. It was a far cry from their usual controlled style and it hurt them - a lot. They ended up spilling the ball 20 times, including 7 from star baller Satou Sabally.
Bottom Line
France bounced back from their loss to the Opals in their last game of the group phase and looked more like the team that was being predicted to challenge for the title. Their defensive edge was back on show and now that Johannes looks like she might have found her range, it's going to be an exciting last couple of game days for the fans.
Germany never really got started and lost their way completely in the second quarter. Their usual control was absent until later in the second half when it was a case of too little, too late. However, despite the loss, they can return home with heads held high and German basketball on an impressive upward trajectory.
They said
"There is always a little bit of stress, but the fact we didn't crack under it feels great. Now we can breathe a little more easily - but not too much. It's great to get to the Semi's. It never gets old with Marine [Johannes] even though I have seen it so many times. Sometimes you don't beleive it when you see it." France forward, Gabby Williams.
" We shot ourselves and this one was on us. We just didn't do the things that we needed to do. I don't thinkthe environment [French support] had anything to do with it. We just turned the ball over far too many times. But we're still proud of what we have done here and the way we have done it. " Germany point guard, Alexis Peterson.
Quick notes
- France have qualified for the semi-finals at the Olympics for the fourth consecutive time; this was their biggest win at the quarter-finals and their second highest scoring performance in a non-group stage game at the Olympics, after scoring 91 v Serbia in Tokyo 2020’s 3rd place game.
- France scored 11 shots from behind the arc: only against Serbia in the 3rd place game in 2021 have they scored more in a game at the Olympics (14). France’s 14 steals are also the second most for them in a game in the competition after their 15 steals against Belarus in 2016. - Germany’s Nyara Sabaly (20pts & 13reb) is only the second player coming off the bench and combining for 20+ points and 10+ rebounds in a game at the Olympics since the start of the 2016 tournament (also Australia’s Marianna Tolo v Puerto Rico in 2021 – 26pts & 17reb). - Marine Johannes has scored five 3-pointers for the second time in this year’s Olympics: no other French player has had multiple games with 5+ made shots from behind the arc in the history of the competition. With her 24 points in today’s game she moved to the third spot of all-time amongst all French players, having now 161 points (Sandrine Gruda, 232; Endene Miyem, 203). - Gabby Williams ended this game with 15 points, six rebounds and five assists, becoming only the second French player with a 15/5/5 game at the Olympics, after Olivia Epoupa in 2016 (16pts, 5reb, 6ast v Belarus). Williams is the third European player to do it in an elimination round after Belgium’s duo formed by Emma Meesseman (twice) and Kim Mestdagh (once).
FIBA