France eliminate Brazil from Quarter-Final contention
RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - France ended Brazil's chances of reaching the Quarter-Finals of the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament by sending the hosts to their fourth loss
RIO DE JANEIRO (Rio 2016 Olympic Games) - France ended Brazil's chances of reaching the Quarter-Finals of the Women's Olympic Basketball Tournament by sending the hosts to their fourth loss in as many games, 74-64, on Thursday.
The win for Les Bleues saw them improve to 3-1 in Group A to effectively clinch their spot in the Final Round.
Brazil got off to a good start and led 19-12 late in the first quarter, thanks in large part to Damiris Dantas who accounted for a dozen points.
France struck back and when Amel Bouderra hit a three-pointer to end the period, the score was all tied up at 20.
Dantas improved to 6-of-6 shooting from the field as she put Brazil up 29-24 midway through the second quarter. However, France then accounted for the final 11 points of the first half to take a 35-29 lead into the break.
Valerie Garnier's charges pushed their advantage to 55-41 late in the third period, before Brazil made a push to get wthin 57-50 as Joice Rodrigues scooped a lay-up that just about beat the end of quarter buzzer.
Despite the partisan crowd at the Youth Arena cheering them on, the Brazilians couldn't get any closer as Sandrine Gruda and Gaelle Skrela helped put the finishing touches on France's win.
Turning Point: Gruda had a personal 5-0 run in the third quarter that resulted in France's advantage going from 40-35 to 45-35 and the first double-digit of the game.
Stats Don't Lie: France's bench provided a huge offensive lift with 25 points. Brazil's substitutes meanwhile combined for just 9 point
Hero: Gruda came off the bench and had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Skrela, who scored just 2 points in the first three games, broke out of her slump for a team-high 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-7 from three-point range.
The Bottom Line: Brazil will play for pride and honour when they face Turkey in their final fixture. As for France, they will take on Asian champions Japan and have their sights on finishing as high as possible in the Group A table.
FIBA