France upset Argentina in a 71-64 thriller – London Olympics Men Basketball Recap
The French men basketball team staged a huge upset on Tuesday evening when they defeated Argentina in a closely contested game.
Argentina are dubbed the favourites alongside Spain to spoil the party for the U.S team and were labelled as one of the contenders for the gold medal before the games. However, the surprise loss to France may change perceptions
as the basketball competition gets interesting.
Tony Parker scored a team high 17 points and 5 assists for France, going 9 of 10 from the foul line to lead the team. Nicolas Batum added 14 points and 7 rebounds for the French side, who lost their campaign opener to the U.S team
in blowout fashion.
Manu Ginobili finished with a game high 26 points and 5 rebounds for Argentina, going 9 of 20 from the field. Luis Scola added 16 points and 8 rebounds, but the rest of the Argentine team failed to contribute and allowed France
to put up the victory.
Both teams started off fighting for the lead. After the score was tied at 10, Parker scored 4 straight points for France followed by a three pointer by Nicolas Batum. A two point shot by Boris Diaw capped off a 9-0 run and gave
France a 19-10 lead. Scola was able to knock down a two point shot for Argentina just before the quarter finished, leaving Argentina trailing by 7 points.
The Argentineans brought the game to the French in the opening minutes of the second quarter, and scored 6 quick points to reduce the deficit to only 1. A three pointer by Hernan Jasen tied the score at 22, but France quickly got
ahead once again by scoring 6 consecutive points, 4 of which came from Kevin Seraphin.
France extended their lead to as many as 8 points, but the Argentine team finished the quarter on a 5-0 run to ensure that they were within striking distance of the French side. France led 32-29 at halftime.
A three pointer by Ginobili followed by a two point shot by Scola again tied the scores at 37, as Argentina refused to let France run away with the lead. They fought hard to stay in close distance of the French side throughout
the game. A two point shot by Pablo Prigioni gave the Argentine team a 43-42 lead for the first time in the second half, with 4:55 left in the quarter. France replied with 6 quick points to regain the lead, and played hard to hold a 55-53 lead going into the
final quarter, even though Argentina kept answering each play with one of their own.
In one of the closest games of the competition so far, neither team was able to score a point for the first 2 minutes and 37 seconds of the final period, as both sides stepped up their defence. France opened the scoring with a
three pointer by Batum but Scola replied instantly with a two point shot. Ginobili’s three pointer then had Argentina trailing by only 2, but Parker showed why he is one of the best point guards in the world by going on a personal 6-0 run and, essentially
taking the game away from the Argentine team. Parker’s two free throws in the final minute ensured that France held on for a 71-64 victory.
France outscored Argentina 44-36 in rebounds, as Seraphin and Batum combined to grab 13 rebounds between them. They also had a 17-12 advantage in assists. Argentina were 4 of 23 from the distance, and shot an overall 37.1% from
the field. Parker was the difference maker for the French side, getting baskets at critical points in the final period and also going 9 of 10 from the foul line to ensure victory for the team. The victory opens up Group A, with four teams tied with 3 points
each.
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