COLOGNE (Germany) - France gave Lithuanian supporters a collective sigh of relief in beating Bosnia and Herzegovina 81-68 to keep alive the Lithuanians' chances of reaching the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Knockout Phase.

In the closing minute of the game, the numerous nervous Lietuva fans in the stands hailed the French with chants of "Merci" to thank them. France had already secured a spot in the Round of 16 before the Group B game, but a Bosnia and Herzegovina win would have eliminated the Lithuanians from the group stage for the first time in EuroBasket history.

 
Turning Point: In a rematch of Bosnia and Herzegovina's 96-90 double overtime win over France in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifers, the game was tight until France used a 15-3 run to pull ahead 41-32, and the gap was 12 points. A 13-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina surge was the first of six lead changes in the final frame before France finished off the underdogs by scoring 20 of 24 points.

TCL Player of the Game:  France were not able to create a lot of offense but Thomas Heurtel played a major role in the game with 14 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds and 2 steals.

Stats Don't Lie:  France dominated the glass 46 to 32 with 21 rebounds and they also forced Bosnia and Herzegovina into 19 turnovers. Bosnia and Herzegovina also connected on only 24 percent from three point range.

Bottom Line: France are already locked up a spot in the Round of 16 so their final group game against Slovenia will matter solely in terms of positioning in the group. Bosnia and Herzegovina face a win-or-go-home encounter with Lithuania - as long as Lithuania defeat Hungary later Tuesday.

They Said: "We had some tough moments early on today, but the mindset was great. And that's what I'm really proud of. Everyone who came into the game had a perfect mindset. We all made mistakes during the game, but we stayed together, and we kept fighting." - Rudy Gobert, France

"We started the game with good intensity. We came back a little slowly in the second half. But in the end we stayed together and got an important win." - Thomas Heurtel, France

"They were very motivated. We knew that before the game. It was a fantastic chance for them to get qualified (for the Round of 16) tonight. So they gave everything, but we were solid. They came back but we stayed solid and didn't panic. We found our rhythm again and they were a bit tired from our effort for the 40 minutes." - France coach Vincent Collet.

"We wanted to finish the job early. We wanted to finish the road to Berlin today, but it wasn't enough. They're really a physically strong team, athletically powerful. We managed to play 36, 37 minutes with them, but at the end I think that is what what made difference." - Miralem Halilovic, Bosnia and Herzegovina

"Tough game, I think we were in the game until the end. We just didn't make enough plays. Nineteen turnovers is way too many against a good team like France. A lot of our mistakes were unforced errors." - John Roberson, Bosnia and Herzegovina

"They had 21 offensive rebounds and we had 19 turnovers and we still were almost in the position to win the game. And that shows that even when we play really bad we are always dangerous and maybe we can beat everybody." - Bosnia and Herzegovina coach Aziz Bekir

 
FIBA