WNBA draftee Berkani ready to live up to the billing

MATOSINHOS (FIBA U20 Women's European Championship) - With a nightmare opening day a distant memory, France are turning their attention towards the FIBA U20 Women's European Championship podium as Lisa Berkani begins to show her quality.

The guard arrived at the tournament with an already lofty reputation, having been enhanced further earlier this year when she was selected in the 2017 WNBA Draft by the Minnesota Lynx.

As all heads turned in her direction when the action tipped off in Matosinhos as people got ready to see what the buzz was all about, it ended up being eyebrows raised as France crashed spectacularly, 86-65, to Hungary.

But despite that initial setback - as well as a worrying wrist injury for Berkani - the odds stacked up against France seem to have galvanized them. They have come even closer together and that was evidenced by a 74-63 triumph against Netherlands in the Round of 16.

"Yes, we had a bad start against Hungary and it made us react and be stronger the two followings days and now we are really focused," said a determined Berkani, who poured in 20 points against the Dutch.

"My injury is getting better now and while we had a bad first half in defense against Netherlands, we woke up at the beginning of the second half. We were more aggressive in defense and we grabbed more rebounds, and as a result, the offense come more easily.

"When we play like that, it's difficult to stop us," added the guard.

As for the thrill of becoming a WNBA draftee, it wasn't something Berkani had been expecting, even if she had made people sit up and take notice via her breakthrough LFB season at Mondeville.

She stated: "I was really surprised and I am really happy and proud because it's a dream that became a reality.

"It's a new challenge and I am really thankful that a WNBA team like Minnesota picked me.

"I want to say thank you to [Lynx Assistant Coach] James Wade for the trust and I hope I will be useful.

"It's also true that it helped that I had a really good season, individually in the French league and so did the whole team.

"The coach Romain L'Hermitte let me play my game as I needed and so it helped me to be good during the whole season.

"Now I hope I can keep going that way for the 2017-18 season."

It's worth noting that 2017 hasn't always seen Berkani riding the crest of a wave, since she had to cope with being omitted from the senior French side for FIBA EuroBasket Women 2017.

It left many observers scratching their heads and there was also the added blow that it meant Berkani will never get to play at an international tournament with a certain French legend.

"Yes, I was really, really disappointed when head coach Valerie Garnier decided to send me away from the team," she confessed.

"I was also deeply disappointed about not playing with Celine [Dumerc] - although I had the chance to play with her when I played at Bourges Basket and so I learned a lot from her.

"However, I am still very motivated to be part of any future campaign for my country," concluded Berkani.

FIBA