Tony Parker Leads France over Belgium, 74-72

Saint-Quentin, France – Tony Parker helped lead the French national team in a tight 74-72 win over Belgium in a warm-up game for the upcoming Eurobasket 2015. France is one of the few nations yet to face defeat in recent friendly tournaments and cups. Even though Belgium put up a laudable and valiant effort, Parker and the rest of the French squad were up to the task to preserve their unbeaten status.

France was coming off a dominant 95-53 victory over Georgia on Friday and a repeat performance was something its fans in attendance were hoping to observe. The visiting Belgian team, however, had other ideas and kicked their own offensive game into high gear in the opening frames and set up a 41-32 lead as both teams headed to their locker rooms for the halftime break.

As captain of the defending Eurobasket champions, Parker led his team from the front, spearheading most of their offensive sets in the second half. Things got intense and more exciting in the third period, when Tony nailed a three-point shot to tie the game at 57-57. A lay-up by Jonathan Tabu ensured that the visitors would head into the fourth and final period with a 59-57 advantage.

The fourth quarter was a back-and-forth battle between both teams. In the end it was a spot-up jumper by, you guessed it, Tony Parker, that sealed the deal for France’s victory. He finished the game with 24 points, four rebounds and two steals. Boris Diaw chipped in 11 points and Rudy Gobert chimed in with six points and eight boards.

France is looking good and are one of the top teams expected to claim one of the 2016 Olympic Game berths that are up for grabs at Eurobasket 2015.