France defend FIBA U16 Women's European Championship crown

IZMIR (Turkey) - France have been crowned FIBA U16 Women's European Championship winners for the second year running after topping Spain 67-63 in a closely contested Final on Saturday.

The Arnaud Guppillotte-coached Les Bleues trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, but turned the tables around behind the stellar play of Lilyana Fontcha and Ainhoa Risacher in the second half.

Fontcha finished the game with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Risacher also chipped in with 15 points. Sara Okeke was Spain's leading scorer in the title-decider with 13 points to her name.

France's ever-consistent producer Risacher was named tournament MVP after leading her team to the title, with Martina Vizmanos Iglesis of Spain, Italy's Emma Giacchetti, Nicole Ogun of Finland and Croatia's star Olivia Vukosa rounding out the All-Star Five selection.

The last step on the podium was claimed by Italy, who stopped Finland's history-making run with a 59-58 triumph in a dramatic Third-Place Game. The fourth-place finish for Finland marked their best performance in any youth competition in over 40 years.

Croatia registered a 74-57 victory over Poland on the last day of action to secure the last ticket to next year's FIBA U17 Women's Basketball World Cup as the fifth-best team in the tournament, joining the four higher ranked nations.

Elsewhere, Serbia finished the tournament on a high note, as they topped Hungary 53-51 for seventh place, with a Milica Dragicevic double-double leading the way.

In the relegation bracket, Greece kept their position in Division A with a 55-51 win against Czech Republic, who could not avoid the drop.

Portugal and Turkey were the two other nations relegated on Friday, with the trio of Germany, Montenegro and Sweden  earning promotion in the Division B tournament.

Final Standings 

1. France
2. Spain
3. Italy
4. Finland
5. Croatia
6. Poland
7. Serbia
8. Hungary
9. Belgium
10. Slovenia
11. Latvia
12. Israel
13. Greece
14. Czech Republic
15. Turkey
16. Portugal

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