It was a disappointing Thursday night for French teams in the EuroLeague Women, with both Bourges and US Valenciennes suffering defeats.

Bourges went down to their first loss in Group B as Hungarian giants MiZo Pecs grabbed a narrow 61-59 win, while USVO slipped to their sixth reverse in seven Group C games, falling 69-61 to Fenerbahce.

A late comeback almost saw Bourges sneak victory, but having gone 60-45 down with 3:06 remaining, their recovery fell just short.

Coach Pierre Vincent said: "We couldn't do anything to stop them scoring, and then our opponents became confident.

"At the end, we were in control but it was too late."

Bourges, whose top scorer on the night was Celine Dumerc with 15 points, join CSKA Volgaburmash on a 6-1 record.

USVO, meanwhile, reached last year's Final Four but they have endured an almighty struggle after the departures of leading players.

Fenerbahce heaped further misery on them with a victory in Istanbul, leaving the French side on a 1-6 record.

Their only win this campaign was against winless Lotos Gdynia, who prop up the standings.

USVO coach Laurent Buffart said: "Once again, our opponents were within reach. We weren't so far behind, but we struggled against their inside play.

"Without being aggressive, it is impossible to win games."

Referring to his team's next game, a return clash against Lotos in Poland, Duffart added: "Now we have to win in Gydnia."

Australian international point guard Kristi Harrower had 14 points for the French side.