France took a big step toward taking part in the 2016 Summer Games Tuesday with a 93-84victory over the Philippines in a Group B tilt at the FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament.
Reigning Euroleague MVP and former NBA guard Nando de Colo paced the French with 27 points, while San Antonio Spurs star and potential future Hall of Famer Tony Parker chipped in 21 points, six assists and four reboundsin the winning effort.
Gilas Pilipinas were led by Andray Blatche and his 21 points, but after a fantastic first quarter both he and the team as a whole went cold from the field, as they finished the contest with a shooting percentage of 41 percentin comparison to France's 54 percent.