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France beat Greece in the preparation period 56-27

Offense is the big problem from Greece, which means they will have another tough task today against one of the best defenses in the tournament

The French U20 team didn't have the solution for the tough Spanish defense on the first day of the European Championship. The defeat against the main candidates for the golden medal killed their chance of reaching the top spot in the group, but they managed to partially make up for that defeat yesterday. They beat Latvia as easily as expected. The offense did much better yesterday - their three point record was 0/5 against Spain, but that improved to 8 three pointer out of 24 attempts in the last game. The overall shooting percentage was 42%.

Latvia couldn't really stand up to them, and things were settles as early as the second quarter, which the French won 25-9. They were 23 points up by half time, more than 30 ahead of the final quarter. That caused them to relax completely, and to score only 4 points in the last 10 minutes. The final 68 points should therefore not be taken for granted. The young French team could have scored more than 80 if necessary. They had 64 field shots, 12 rebounds more, and 15 assists.

Coach Fournier rested his key players well. Not one of them spent more than 25 minutes on the count. Their power forward Badiane scored 8 points, and added 13 rebounds in the 25 minutes. Only Turcinovic scored more than 10 points.

France are meeting the weakest team in the group today. The win should be a sure thing against Greece, which means the French will have two points for the second round. They played a preparation period game against Greece, and won easily 56-27, with a great performance by Badiana. Greece have no tall players in the key, and their defense can't do well against the tough French defense,

Greece are regarded as one of the worst teams in the tournament, and many think they will end up in Division B. And still, they didn't do badly against the might Spain yesterday at all. The offense wasn't at the necessary level. They scored only 38 points, but defensively managed to stand up to the favorite for a long time. Greece even won the first quarter, and the score was tied up until the last minute in the first half. The third quarter was the key - the Spaniards scored 19 points, Greece 0, and the game was settled. Greece were limited to only 13 points in the second half.  

If we take a look at stats, we find it hard to believe that Greece were that close throughout the first half. They recorded 22 turnovers, only 6 assists, and the field goal percentage of 27,7% (2/21 in three pointers). They managed to win the rebound battle, and that was the biggest surprise. It was mostly because of Tarla, who recorded 16 rebounds, with 11 points (3/10). Their main scorer Stamolamprou recorded only 8 points (3/11).

It is hard to expect from Greece to do endanger the French win today. They will struggle in offense once again, and they will have a hard time winning the rebound battle against the physically powerful French centers.

France are the team whose game least suits the Greek team. There are two main things that Greece have problems with - the first one if the France's physical power, and the fact they're the tallest team in the tournament. The second one is the tough French defense, which limited Spain to 48 points in the first, and Latvia to 43 in the second game. Greece's problems with offense are well known. They scored less than 40 points against Spain yesterday, lost by 17, and in the first round, Latvia beat them by 13 points. France beat Latvia by 25 points yesterday. I expect something similar to happen today against Greece - a game like the one they played in the preparation period. France won 56-27. Simply put, the French defense is too good for the Greek inefficient offense. Other than the convincing win, a good option is the team under for Greece, no matter how low the margin might seem.