U16 WOMEN

France booked their place in the quarter-finals of the U16 European Championships for Women with a 59-54 victory over Hungary on Wednesday.

Staring possible elimination in the face, Les Bleues bounced back from the worst possible start to secure a result that sees them finish in fourth place in Group F.

But it all looked improbable when the Hungarians rolled to a 13-0 advantage in a frenetic opening spell. France was undaunted. Holding their opponents without a field goal for seven minutes, they went on a 20-3 run to cruise into a 33-20 half-time lead.

Hungary tried to hit back, using a 8-1 burst to close the deficit to six early in the fourth quarter but France, led by Bérengère Dinga-Mbomi's 13 points, held on.

"It is a relief," said France coach Julien Egloff. "We'd lost two games in a row and we couldn't afford to lose a third. But we showed a lot of strength out there. And now we're into the quarter-finals, anything can happen."

Hungary, paced by a game-high 14 points from Dorina Kalocsai, now go into the play-offs for ninth.