2023-06-22 20:02:38
Laborious in the first round, the girls of Jean-Aimé Toupane took place against Montenegro on Thursday, in Ljubljana, in the quarterfinals of the European championship.
This time, there was no photo. After three narrow victories in the group stage, the Blues crushed Montenegro (90-46) this Thursday, in Ljubljana, in the quarter-finals of the Women’s EuroBasket. They will face Belgium – which made short work of Serbia (93-53) – on Saturday for a new qualification in the final of the European championship. Eighth consecutive appearance at this stage of the competition for the five-time vice-champions of Europe, they who are chasing a first continental title since 2009.
Led by Marieme Badiane (20 pts), Sandrine Gruda (18 pts) or Marine Fauthoux (15 pts), to name a few, Jean-Aimé Toupane’s players delivered a much more convincing performance than against the Germany (58-50), Great Britain (63-57) and Slovenia (73-68), during their first three outings in Slovenia, where Tony Parker, Boris Diaw, Florent Piétrus and company had been covered with gold, in 2013, to the Euro. The day and the night. A real collective demonstration, on this historic day for French basketball with the NBA Draft, in Brooklyn, and Victor Wembanyama who will, unless surprised, be chosen in first position. The figures speak for themselves: 126 to 30 in the evaluation, more than 60% in shots, 27 assists for 9 loss of ball (against 10 and 18)…
Jovanovic on the mat, Mack in check, the Blues roll out from the start
It didn’t take long to realize that the evening would be mild in the Slovenian capital this Thursday. After shooting 12.5 points and 6.3 rebounds in the group stage, Milica Jovanovic, hit in the calf, was quickly forced to abandon her teammates. End of mission. A big blow for Montenegro, scattered like a puzzle at the end of the first quarter (20-9) and who only managed to keep up with difficulty in the second. The score at halftime? 44-26 for the French, sovereign, with already 9 points from Fauthoux and Badiane and a crazy address (63.6% at 2 pts, 55.6 at 3 pts, 100% at LF). “I remember the impact of the 11 players. Everyone brings their little thing. We defend very hard and it gives us easy baskets. The pick and roll? We had targeted it, we knew it was their weak point and we exploited it very well», savored Fauthoux, on beIN SPORTS.
No relaxation on returning from the locker room, nor waking up on the Montenegrin side, with Natasha Mack who was having a bad evening, she who weighed almost 15 points in the group stage. Gruda was heating up, Badiane continued on its way… A healthy walk, with a 27-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter (65-37), the biggest gap in the match at that time. Gap that went up to +46. In any case, the fate of the meeting was already sealed, coach Toupane having been able to concern everyone (90-46 final score).
The most important thing is the victory, but the manner makes it even more satisfying.
Romane Bernies
«A lot of joy and satisfaction, it takes a weight off because we see that we haven’t lost our identity and that we are able to do this kind of thing in big matches. We took this meeting from the right end defensively and in this case, offensively, everything is taking shape a bit and we can have fun. At the dawn of a big semi-final, it’s reassuring. The most important thing is the victory, but the manner makes it even more satisfying. Defense ? It’s the sinews of war, we’ve been told enough about it, it was complicated throughout the preparation, but it pays off and that’s how we win titles. Afterwards, we have enough talent in attack. Everyone has contributed their stone to the building. We take pleasure. It’s fun, satisfying and encouraging», smiles Romane Bernies.
With or without Rupert against Belgium?
«We exploit what hurtsanalyzes the best scorer of the match, Badiane. It’s good for confidence and for the future. My game? I felt good and the leaders were able to put me in the spotlight. We touched on their weak points. Doubts after the first round? We should not underestimate the hen we were in. It’s never easy to enter a competition. We flew over the preparation. We never doubted it, even if it wasn’t very nice… In any case, it’s nice to find fluidity again. Defense ? It is our identity, it is there that we must support. Belgium ? They have walked on water from the start. It will be a complicated match but that is also what we expect. We are ready.The Habs will be aiming for a sixth European final in a row on Saturday. To see if it will be with or without Iliana Rupert, not yet recovered from her shoulder injury last Sunday and absent this Thursday.
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