France tower over New Zealand to finish undefeated

XI'AN (China) - France were absolutely relentless as they dominated New Zealand, 94-39, to finish undefeated at the FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 2024 in Xi'An.

 

For the third game in a row, France steamrolled through the competition.

 

They thoroughly outclassed New Zealand on both ends of the floor en route sweeping the WOQT at the Shaanxi Provincial Gymnasium. Gabby Williams led the way with 21 points, with every French player who saw action score at least 3 points and make at least one field-goal. On the other end, the Tall Ferns drew a team-high 10 points from Esra McGoldrick.

 

 

Turning Point: Behind the hot start of Williams and unyielding defensive pressure, France burst out of the gates. They forced 9 Tall Ferns turnovers on the back of 7 steals in the first quarter alone, and this helped Les Bleus erect a commanding 28-9 lead. That proved to be an early knockout blow as coach Guy Malloy's squad could not mount any serious rally afterward.

TCL Player of the Game: Gabby Williams imposed her presence early and often. She scored 13 of France's first 17 points as the Olympic Games hosts displayed their superior quality. She finished with 21 points on top of 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists and 1 block. Williams was a picture of efficiency, shooting 10-of-13 from the field.

Stats don't lie​: All tournament long, France had been known for sublime ball movement, and they maintained that stellar level of team play here. Five French players finished with 3 or more assists as coach Jean Aime Toupane's squad tallied a total of 23 assists against only 4 turnovers. Sarah Michel Boury was their most brilliant playmaker tonight with 8 assists.

Bottom Line​: Before this tournament began, there was some uncertainty about how hard France would play, especially since they already had a berth in the Olympic Games as hosts. Despite that, Les Bleus left no doubt about their level of play. They treated each contest as an opportunity to make a statement, and that's exactly what they did. When the OQT smoke cleared, France had beaten their opponents by an average difference of 45.0 points.

They said: "We had many injuries, and we brought a very young team to the tournament. I am pleased that they go the opportunity to play against such powerful teams like France and got some valuable experience that will serve the program well in the future." - Guy Molloy, New Zealand head coach

"We came here with one goal and that was to qualify for the Olympics. It's a hard one hitting home without receiving that ticket, but going off what coach said, I think we got a lot of experience from this tournament. Now, it's time to put our head down and get to work for future tournaments." - Tayla Dalton, New Zealand guard

"We're really happy to win the tournament even if we already qualified for the Olympics, but the way we did it was what we were looking for. We came over here to do a job, and the team did a great job tonight." - Jean Aime Toupane, France head coach

"We knew we were already qualified, but we came to work and show everyone that in Paris we would be ready. We are happy because we got the job done, and we cannot wait to start the Olympics." - Sarah Michel Boury, France guard

FIBA