"Close race with world No.3." Korea fought well "Big harvest before basketball World Cup"... "5 outbursts of 3 points." Kang Seul is very active

*This content was translated by AI.

I lost, but I fought well. The Korean women's basketball team has also proven its competitiveness against one of the world's leading powerhouses.

The women's national team, led by head coach Park Soo-ho, lost 62-89 to France in the final qualifying round for the 2026 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Lyon, France on the 18th (Korea time).

South Korea, which has already confirmed its advance to the World Cup finals, proved its potential with a close game against its home team France, finishing the first half by just one point.

Kang Yi-seul, who showed off his hot shooting sense in the final qualifying round, played an active role with 17 points and 5 rebounds, including 5 three-point shots (5/11). Choi Yi-sam also added 14 points (4 3-pointers), and Park Ji-soo showed his presence with 3 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 3 block shots.

In France, Marine Johannes scored the most points by both teams with 24 points (6 3-pointers), seven rebounds, and five assists and two steals, while Valleine Ayai (16 points), Leriya Lacan (11 points), and Aminata Gueye (10 points) scored more than double digits.

Coach Park Soo-ho said at a press conference after the game, "The biggest harvest is that the players gained confidence in the game against the strong team, regardless of the victory and defeat," and vowed to "show good performance in the World Cup finals based on this experience."

Kang Yi-seul said, "It was meaningful to play against a good team called France. "I was physically disappointed because it was my last game, but I got the experience of playing seesaw games with Kang's team," he said.

The atmosphere was good at the beginning of the game. South Korea went on a 7-0 run with back-to-back goals from Choi Yi-sam, Park Ji-hyun and Kang Yi-seul. He continued his close game with France with his unique fast attack and solid defense.

France, ranked third in the world, was not easy. Johannes's outpost burst and gradually narrowed the score. South Korea finished the first half with just one point behind by Lee So-hee's two points in the last attack of the second quarter.

France was in the mood in the third quarter. France, which used its height to attack South Korea under the basket, even tried to defend against pressure and targeted South Korea.

South Korea trailed by 44-484 points with three consecutive points by Park Ji-hyun and Choi Yi-sam at the end of the third quarter. However, he allowed four runs to Lacan and entered the final quarter with a 45-538-point deficit.

The fourth quarter was a shame. While South Korea's physical strength fell, France scored by targeting the inside and outside. Kang Yi-seul burned his will to chase by hitting three consecutive points, but lost by 62-89 27 points after allowing the first double-digit lead with five minutes left in the fourth quarter.

South Korea has already confirmed its advance to the World Cup finals before the match against France. Earlier, South Korea defeated the Philippines 105-74 in the fourth round of the final qualifying round. In Game 3, they beat Colombia 82-52. In the second game, the team defeated Nigeria, ranked eighth, by 17 points.

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*This content was translated by AI.