BERLIN (AP) — Marine Johannès and Janelle Salaün led France to the semifinals of the women’s FIBA World Cup for the first time by beating China 90-61 on Thursday, joining the United States among the final four.
Both Johannès and Salaün scored 15 points while Gabby Williams contributed 14 as the Olympic finalists put themselves in contention for a first World Cup medal since the inaugural tournament in 1953, when France finished third in the final round.
“It means a lot,” Williams said of reaching the semifinals for the first time. “We want to be one of the greatest teams ever to put on the French jersey. Obviously we have a big goal this tournament, but it’s great to check this off the list.”
Chants of “Allez les Bleues” rang around the Berlin Arena before Williams opened the scoring, and the French supporters made sure they were heard for the rest of the game as their team dominated on the court below. France has been fluid and free-scoring, beating its four opponents so far by a combined 156 points.
The team set a tournament record for 3-pointers in a single game by netting 22 in its final group game on Monday. The French players connected on 14 of 37 attempts Thursday, with Johannès and Salaün scoring three triples each.
“We are lucky because we are a group that have known each other for a couple of years now,” Salaün said of France's team spirit. “We went through a lot of things, the Olympics, training camp(s), so we just know each other and we know what we want. We have a goal and we want to do everything to get to this goal.”
Salaün had an ice pack bound to her right knee. France coach Jean Aime Toupane told The Associated Press it was just a precaution.
Two spots to be decided
France awaits the Germany-Belgium winner later Thursday, while Spain faces Australia in the last quarterfinal for a semifinal showdown with the U.S. on Saturday.
The four-time defending champion Americans routed Hungary 108-56 in the first quarterfinal earlier Thursday with Napheesa Collier scoring 19 points to stretch their winning run in the tournament to 34 games since a semifinal loss to Russia in the 2006 semifinals.
Zhang's impact limited
The French defense limited the impact of China’s 7-foot-3 Zhang Ziyu, who had the attention of two French players any time she received the ball. The 19-year-old sensation was held scoreless over her 7 minutes, 18 seconds of play in the first half, though she contributed in defense with three blocks before halftime.
There was nothing Zhang could do to stop Johannès from scoring successive 3-pointers in the third quarter, when she also got on the scoreboard. Zhang finished the game with 7 points, 8 rebounds and 7 turnovers.
Han Xu, who had a double-double in each of her four games at the tournament, again led China with 21 points and 9 rebounds.
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Ciarán Fahey, The Associated Press
