Gabby Williams set a French game record with six 3-pointers as France routed Nigeria 111-56 and established a new World Cup benchmark from beyond the arc. France made 22 threes in the victory, surpassing Japan’s previous tournament record of 20 and closing the group stage unbeaten.
What happened
Williams led a relentless perimeter attack, while Marine Johannes made five triples and Janelle Salaun added four. The three leading shooters combined for 15 of France’s 22 makes, providing the foundation for an offensive performance that Nigeria could not contain.
France took control immediately, hitting 14 threes and scoring 65 points in the first half. That early production put the record within reach and left little doubt about the result before France completed the 55-point rout.
Why it matters
The 22 made 3-pointers moved France past Japan’s World Cup record of 20 and shattered France’s previous tournament high of 15. The new mark was seven makes higher than the French standard, an increase of 46.7%.
The record also provided a decisive finish to an unbeaten group stage. France now carries both momentum and a newly established tournament record into the elimination rounds, where each result will determine whether its run continues.
By the numbers
Williams, Johannes and Salaun accounted for 68.2% of France’s made threes. Their combined 15 matched France’s entire previous World Cup high, while the rest of the roster supplied seven more to push the total to 22.
France’s first-half figures captured the scale of the shooting display: 14 triples and 65 points before halftime. The team then added eight more makes from deep in the second half to break the World Cup record and finish 35 points above Japan’s prior benchmark in the category’s simple scoring value.
What to watch next
France advances to the quarterfinals as the tournament shifts from group competition to knockout play. The record-setting perimeter performance raises the immediate question of whether France can sustain that shooting impact when the stakes increase and every game becomes an elimination test.
The unbeaten group stage has secured France’s place in that next phase. Its next outing will offer the first indication of how the group-stage dominance translates to the quarterfinal stage.