France edge out Slovenia, to meet USA in dream basketball final

TOKYO: Nicolas Batum blocked Klemen Prepelic's lay-up with two seconds left as France edged Slovenia 90-89 in the men's basketball semifinals at the Tokyo Olympics.

"I think we have a great team, we're a really good group, we have a group of guys, a mix of generations who like playing together, who like to hang out," Evan Fournier of France said after the game.

France will play the United States in the final on Saturday.

"It represents a real step towards a dream, and the dream is to win the Olympics against the United States. We have to rest and not let our minds wander, and prepare as much as possible, because there's a team waiting for us," Fournier added.

Luka Doncic had a triple-double for Slovenia with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 18 assists. Mike Tobey scored 23 and Prepelic added 17.

Nando de Colo had 25 points for France. Fournier contributed 23 and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot finished with 15.

Slovenia cut the deficit to one point with 33 seconds left through Prepelic's 3 before Batum blocked Prepelic's layup try to seal the deal.

Earlier, three-time defending champions the United States nailed down another big win as they beat Australia 97-78 in Thursday's other semifinal.

The US finished second in the group stage by overwhelming Iran 120-66 and the Czech Republic 119-84 before knocking out Spain 95-81 in the quarterfinals. IANS

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