Host France whips Philippines in Fiba 3×3 World Cup

Angelo Tsagarakis of France drives against Kiefer Ravena of the Philippines during the 2017 Fiba 3×3 World Cup in Nantes, France. Photo from Fiba.com

France outclassed the Philippines, 22-11, to gain early lead in the 2017 Fiba 3×3 World Cup early Monday morning (Manila time) in Nantes, France.

Led by big man Charles Bronchard and speedy guard Dominique Gentil, No. 10 France raced to an early advantage that the Philippines couldn’t recover from.

A two-pointer by Bronchard stretched the gap to eight, 16-8, before Charly Pontens sealed the dominant victory for France, which leads Pool B with a 2-0 record, with still one minute and 27 seconds to spare.

The Filipinos, who were forced to take contested shots outside due to France’s size and solid defense, split their first two games in the tournament after a 21-15 win over Romania earlier.

READ: Paras, Ravena lead PH over Romania Fiba 3×3 World Cup

JR Quiñahan gave the 18th seed Philippines a 2-1 edge, but France quickly answered with a two-pointer of its own and the Filipinos never led again.

The Philippines will try to bounce back against No. 2 Slovenia early Wednesday morning. The game is set at 1:40 a.m before wrapping the elimination round with a duel against No. 15 El Salvador, which was also clobbered by France, 21-5, earlier.

The top two teams in each pool will advance to the quarterfinals.