The solid Blues

There was no hitch for the Blues. After three days of training in Toulouse, the protégés of Jean-Aimé Toupane began serious things in their preparation for Euro 2023 during a friendly match against Serbia on the floor of the Palais des Sports André-Brouat. Led by Valériane Vukosavljevic (7 points), the Habs inflicted an 11-2 on their opponents in just under four minutes. A 6-0 at the very end of the first quarter with Romane Bernies (6 points, 5 assists) maneuvering allowed the French team to conclude the first quarter with a fourteen length lead. However, Serbia had reserves and responded from the start of the second. After a free throw from Sandrine Gruda (3 points, 10 rebounds), the Blue folded against Yvonne Anderson (8 points) and let Serbia sign a 9-0 to return to six units. The reply of the Bleues was an iron defense, impermeable for more than six minutes and an attack which responded present.

A first victory in preparation ☝️#PassionatelyBlue #FRASER pic.twitter.com/7U7UjVPK3k

– French basketball teams (@FRABasketball) May 28, 2023

Serbia finished strong but Les Bleues held on

A 15-0 lead by Iliana Rupert (18 points, 6 rebounds) allowed the Habs to regain a 21-point lead and then join the locker room with an 18-unit mattress. With a revamped five, the Blues started the second half of the game with difficulty, with Serbia finding solutions to get closer to the ten-point mark. The series are linked on both sides of the floor with the gap between the two formations which oscillated between thirteen and 18 points. After two and a half minutes in the fourth quarter, on a three-point shot from Sasa Cado (17 points), Marina Maljkovic’s players came back to just seven points. The end of the match saw the tension rise but the Blues were able to hold on. A final three-point shot from Mamignan Touré (21 points) allowed the Habs to win with a twelve-point lead (73-61). A success that they will have to confirm this Monday during a second preparation match against the same opponent.