Latvia eliminates powerhouse France from FIBA World Cup

France tapped in a missed jumper just after the final buzzer sounded as Latvia held on for an 88-86 win in their second game of the FIBA World Cup. After an opening-game loss to Canada, the result eliminated France, and meant that 2-0 Latvia and 2-0 Canada advance in the tournament.

Les Bleus finished second in EuroBasket last year, and have a team full of NBA players. But Latvia had Arturs Zagars.

Zagars is a 23-year-old point guard who plays for Nevėžis Kėdainiai in the Lithuanian league. He went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, but he may have opened some eyes with his monster performance Sunday.

As for France, the loss will conclude a disappointing tournament. The French have one remaining game against Lebanon, but they can't advance. 

Evan Fournier scored 27 points and made five three-pointers for the losing side, perhaps inspiring an NBA team to rescue him from his exile on the New York Knicks bench. Rudy Gobert got three steals and blocked two shots, but only scored nine points, mostly from the free-throw line.

Davis Bertans of the Oklahoma City Thunder had 15 points for Latvia, making four three-pointers, while his older brother Dairis Bertans, chipped in eight points, with two triples of his own. Davis called it "the biggest win since 1935" for the Baltic nation, which won the EuroBasket tournament in 1935.

The Latvians benefited from the support of a huge contingent of fans - 2,000 to 2,500 - who traveled over 6,000 miles to Indonesia.

“It felt we’re playing in Latvia,” forward Rolands Smits told reporters after he scored 20 points in the win. “The gym is full of  Latvian people. It’s amazing that they came so far away to cheer us.”

After the massive upset, Latvia will move on to a group with Canada and likely two other international powerhouse teams, Spain and Brazil, but they'll stay in Indonesia. But if they keep defying expectations, we have no doubt thousands of fans will follow them to the Philippines for the finals.