quarter-finals was Latvia, who were looking to upset the hosts and advance to the semis. They were ultimately denied that chance 84–70, as France in front of over 22,000 spectators at Stade Pierre-Mauroy moved closer to their desired destination. France, needing one more win to put themselves in position to play in the final, were again pitted against rivals Spain. In a classic duel between the two battle-tested sides, it was the Spaniards led by Pau Gasol's 40 points and 11 rebounds ending France's hope of repeating. However, with third place still on the line France defeated Serbia 81–68 to come away with the bronze medal.After going (4–0) during the 2016 Olympic Qualifying Tournament, France qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Although they only managed to reach the quarter-finals before ceding once again to Spain. After the tournament, French great Tony Parker announced his retirement from the national team, ending an illustrious run with Les Bleurs''. At EuroBasket 2017, France continued their underwhelming play, as the team was knocked out in the Round of 16 to Germany 84–81. The devastating loss for France was their worst finish at the Euros since 1963. During the process to qualify for the 2019 FIBA World Cup, France went through European Qualifiers in order to secure a spot. The national team would go on to finish with a (10–2) record during qualifying to clinch their place at the World Cup finals. At the 2019 FIBA World Cup, France entered the tournament looking to continue their strong play the team displayed during the qualifiers. France was slotted into Group G to begin their run at the World Cup finals. Their first test was against a familiar foe in Germany, a match that went down to the wire. But behind the heroics of national team star Evan Fournier's (26 points and 10 rebounds) France pulled out a tight 78–74 win. In their final two preliminary group phase matches versus Jordan and Dominican Republic, France advanced to the second group phase, by trashing their opponents on route to heavy victories. In France's next encounter, the team were up against Lithuania. France, however, prevailed in a physical clash between the two European heavyweights 78–75, to lockup a spot into the quarter-finals with one match remaining in the second group phase. There, France were pitted against Australia. Although even with another strong showing from Evan Fournier, and his (31