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Türkiye advanced to the semifinals of the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup after defeating France 94-87 in a thrilling quarterfinal in Istanbul.
The national team will face Serbia on Saturday in the semifinals of the tournament.
Türkiye met France at the Turkcell Basketball Development Center in the tournament hosted by Türkiye, with both teams seeking a place in the last four.
France finished the closely contested first quarter ahead 24-21.
Türkiye played stronger basketball in the second quarter, led by Darius Karutasu and Omer Kutluay, who combined for 18 points in the period.
The national team opened a six-point lead in the 16th minute, going ahead 41-35.
France, however, scored with two seconds left in the half and went into the locker room with a 46-45 lead.
The third quarter remained tight, with France holding a 70-68 advantage before the final period.
The fourth quarter saw major excitement as Türkiye refused to give up despite falling six points behind in the 37th minute.
Türkiye completed an important comeback with consecutive points from Omer Kutluay and won the game 94-87 to reach the semifinals.
The match was also watched by Türkiye Basketball Federation President Hidayet Turkoglu and members of the federation's board.
Türkiye men's national basketball team head coach Ergin Ataman also attended the game.
Aydin Ors, one of Turkish basketball's legendary head coaches, and former national players Mehmet Okur and Semih Erden also followed the quarterfinal in Istanbul.
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