KATOWICE (Poland) - France's journey at FIBA EuroBasket 2025 began in dominant fashion on Thursday.
Les Bleus had a comfortable afternoon on the opening day of Group D, pretty much controlling the encounter from start to finish as they reached a 92-64 victory over Belgium.
Turning Point
There was no real turning point, as Frederic Fauthoux's team found themselves on the losing end for only the initial 25 seconds of action.
France had already gained so much momentum by the beginning of the second quarter, when Zaccharie Risacher came up with a spectacular poster dunk, that their lead never dropped below double digits again.
TCL Player of the Game
It was mostly a collective effort by the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 runner-ups as everyone on the French team contributed in scoring.
Bilal Coulibaly however added some extra spark on both ends of the floor, to finish with 12 points (5-of-7 from two-point range), 6 rebounds, and back-to-back blocks on Ismael Bako.
Stats Don't Lie
France were so dominant that they didn't even need to hit any three-pointers. In fact, neither of the two teams had a solid showing from the perimeter. Belgium shot 7-of-20 from beyond the arc, and France finished on 8-of-28.
The difference was that France were very successful almost every time they drove to the basket, outscoring Belgium 38-20 in the paint.
Bottom Line
France will now focus on their upcoming matchup, facing Luka Doncic's Slovenia, aware of their all-around capabilities. Some more good news for Frederic Fauthoux? Nadir Hifi's immediate offensive contribution after replacing the injured Matthew Strazel, and Sylvain Francisco's playmaking gems.
Coach Dario Gjergja meanwhile can look at Hans Vanwijn's 13-point effort and Ismael Bako's 11-point game as positice takeaways heading into the next game.
They Said
"It took us a little bit of time, but we're happy. We won by 30, and we did a lot of good stuff. It was like I never left the team. I'm happy I have rejoined the group; I'm ready whenever the coach puts me on the court. I'll do everything to help my team." - France's Nadir Hifi.
"Really satisfied with the fact that everybody contributed. The main goal for us is defensively, putting high energy, pressure, and getting our opponents really tired. We did a great job; our standard is to limit our opponents to a maximum of 70 points, and they scored 64 today. It gives us confidence offensively, we're able to push the ball and score off turnovers." - France's Elie Okobo.
"I think we showed great basketball in a lot of moments, we have to solve the mistakes we made. But we keep fighting, we have hope for the next games. You have to respect France; they are a really good team. We proved we could play really well against them." - Belgium's Ismael Bako.
For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!
FIBA