Great Britain were beaten 79-56 by hosts France in their third EuroBasket qualifier.
GB made a terrible start to Friday’s game in Pau, falling 22-2 behind in the first quarter and trailing 46-20 at half-time.
They improved in the second half, edging the third quarter but never looked like turning the game around.
Ashley Hamilton scored 12 points for the visitors, with Dan Clark and Gabe Olaseni adding 11 each.
GB missed their first nine shots and turned the ball over five times before getting on the board after France hit 15 unanswered points.
A good start to the second quarter (7-2) offered hope that GB guards Tarik Phillip and Luke Nelson were generating the threat their side needed, but France responded with a 15-5 run and extended the lead at the end of the half.
GB scored the first eight points of the second half, but France again regained control to take a 25-point cushion into the last 10 minutes, a lead the visitors were unable to make a significant dent in.
Marc Steutel’s team play Montenegro in Pau on Sunday in the second of two qualifiers, and it is a game they probably need to win if they are to stand a chance of reaching next year’s finals.
“We’re disappointed with the result,” said Clark. “We made life difficult for ourselves in the first half. We have to build on some positives from the game because we’ve got another game on Sunday – and it’s one that we’ve got to win.”
| France | 3 | 2 | 1 | 233 | 205 | 5 | +28 |
| Great Britain | 3 | 1 | 2 | 211 | 233 | 4 | -22 |
| Germany | 2 | 1 | 1 | 156 | 150 | 3 | +6 |
| Montenegro | 2 | 1 | 1 | 147 | 159 | 3 | -12 |
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