France Women’s Basketball Team Beats South Korea to Reach World Cup Quarterfinals

Slow Start Leaves Les Bleues Chasing South Korea Early

France entered the contest looking to build on a 99-53 rout of Hungary 24 hours earlier, but faced immediate resistance from South Korea. Coupled with a rapid transition offense that caught the French defense flat-footed, South Korea built a 31-24 advantage by the end of the first quarter.

“On a du mal à rentrer dans les matchs, il faut qu’on arrive à trouver du rythme. Je pense que les jambes étaient un peu lourdes par rapport à hier,” Valériane Ayayi told beIN Sports, describing the team’s difficulty in finding early rhythm following their heavy legs from the previous night.

Trailing by seven points and hampered by 12 turnovers before halftime, France began to steady their footing in the second quarter. Jean-Aimé Toupane’s squad tightened its defensive rotations, carving out a 43-37 lead by the intermission.

Marine Johannès and Dominique Malonga Ignite the Turnaround

Marine Johannès spearheaded the surge off the bench, finishing with a game-high 17 points, which included a 4-of-7 clip from three-point range. Johannès previously shared scoring honors against Hungary alongside Gabby Williams and Dominique Malonga, but stood alone atop the leaderboard against South Korea.

Inside the paint, the near two-meter frame of Dominique Malonga altered the defensive landscape after spending much of the first half on the bench. Malonga contributed 14 points, matching the output of captain Gabby Williams, who also fueled the third-quarter breakout. Carla Leite added 11 points from a productive French bench that consistently maintained pressure.

“Je [retiens] l’engagement des filles, elles n’ont pas lâché sur les aspects offensifs et defensifs, j’ai vu une vraie équipe ce soir,” Toupane remarked after the final buzzer, praising the collective defensive intensity and offensive persistence that ultimately sealed the outcome.

Group B Dominance Secures Quarterfinal Bye

With two victories from their opening two fixtures—alongside a 2-1 record for both South Korea and Hungary—France is mathematically assured of finishing at the summit of Group B. This status holds firm regardless of the outcome of their final preliminary phase fixture against Nigeria, which remains winless in group play.

By claiming the group crown, Les Bleues bypass the qualification playoff round entirely. This grants the squad crucial recovery time and avoids an extra fixture ahead of the knockout stages, pointing them toward a favorable quarterfinal pairing on Thursday.

France will close out its preliminary group schedule against Nigeria on Monday, September 7, 2026, with live television coverage broadcast on TMC and beIN Sports 2.