The French men’s basketball team moved into the Olympic semi-finals after an 82-73 win over Canada, lining up a last-four clash with World Cup champions Germany on Thursday. The United States overwhelmed Brazil 122-87, and will take on Serbia.
Paris' Bercy Arena, filled with home crowd was electric as France and Canada engaged in an entertaining up-tempo, physical contest that had the building rocking from tip-off to buzzer.
Feeding off the energy, France gave the crowd what they came to see, storming to a 19-5 lead in the opening minutes they would never relinquish, each basket triggering a thundering roar.
Isaia Cordinier ignited the crowd with a powerful dunk and successive threes, while Guerschon Yabusele also found his groove early as Victor Wembanyama never really got going.
"It's a great feeling to be able to make sure we play on the last day of the Olympics," said guard Evan Fournier, referencing the final on Saturday.
"Make sure we give ourselves a chance to win a medal and hopefully it's going be for the right one."
France, which won silver in Tokyo, advance to the semifinals to face World Cup champions Germany Thursday, a rematch of its 85-71 loss in Lille last Friday.
Five-time Olympic champions United States will play Serbia, a rematch of the 2016 Rio Games final, which will feature LeBron James, a four-time NBA most valuable player playing against the reigning three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.
(with Reuters)
