Game Summary

Turning point: France picked up their defensive pressure with eight minutes left in the game, holding Latvia to seven points the rest of the way.

Hero: Tony Parker.  The NBA guard once again took over in the second half for France on a time when no other starter scored in double figures. Parker scored France's final 10 points one day after scoring France's final 11 points against Germany.

Stats: 15. The other four French starters scored a combined 15 points.

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Tony Parker once again took over the proceedings and carried France to a 60-51 victory over Latvia, scoring 21 of his 23 points after intermission in helping France overcome a 10-point third quarter deficit and book their spot in the Qualifying Round of EuroBasket 2009.

The other French starters combined for 15 points while Ali Traore came off the bench for 12 points for Vincent Collet's team, which held Latvia to just 33 percent shooting for the game and survived

Tony Parker had a big second half for France, scoring 21 of his 23 points.

scoring just three points in the second quarter.

"For sure if we were alive after the first half it was only because of our defense. We were defending very well, we couldn't do better. In the second quarter we couldn't buy a basket. And this would have killed us if we gave up on defense. But fortunately we stayed focused on our defensive aspects," said Collet.

The game turned when Boris Diaw and Nando de Colo both knocked down back-to-back three-pointers in an 18-4 France run to close the third quarter

"Finally we started to make some open shots and the game changed when Boris hit two in a row and Nando hit two in a row. And after that Tony Parker showed why he's Tony Parker," said the coach.

Latvia dropped to 0-2 in Group B despite 18 points and seven rebounds from Kaspers Kambala and six points and 20 rebounds by Andris Biedrins. And Kristaps Janicenoks chipped in 12 points in a losing effort.

"I don't know. They just started to make a lot of three-point shots. We were more concentrated on not letting them shoot layups and close shots at the basket. So we were allowing them to take long shots. But they made some really big shots. That's how they came back," said Biedrins, who has scored just 12 points in the first two games.

Biedrins said the fourth quarter was just too much Tony Parker, who scored France's final 10 points one day after totaling France's final 11 points against Germany.

"Of course Tony is an All-Star player. And down the stretch is his time. He'll do everything to get his team a win. He was great."

Both teams started the game struggling on offense, with the French defense its usual self and the Latvians being spurred on by some 3,000 Latvian fans.

Kristaps Valters's basket gave Latvia an 8-5 lead with 3:15 to play but Kestutis Kemzura's men failed to score the rest of the quarter. And Traore, who entered the game when Ronny Turiaf picked up his second foul, scored France's final nine points of the quarter for a 13-8 French lead.

There was more of the same defense in the second quarter, in which neither side scored in the first four minutes.

Latvia finally were able to find the basket with Armands Skele and Kambala combining for 12 of Latvia's 13 points.

France however never found a rhythm and made just 1 of 16 shots and scored just three points in the quarter as Latvia led 21-16 at intermission.

Latvia took control of the game early in the third quarter with Janicenoks converting a lay-up and knocking down two three-pointers in three consecutive possessions while Biedrins' dunk gave Latvia a 33-23 lead.

France however turned up the defensive intensity and let Parker take over on offense as the Spurs star scored six points while helping set up the Diaw and de Colo three-pointers, the second de Colo triple completing an 18-4 run as France led 41-37 after three periods.

Janis Blums's three-pointer and two foul shots had Latvia ahead 44-43 with eight minutes left. But de Colo drained another three-ball and Parker scored two baskets to start his 10-point run in France's 11-2 fourth quarter spurt to make it 54-46.

KESTUTIS KEMEZURA (LATVIA COACH):

"Despite the fact, that yesterday we lost to Russia, today we came back and we fight. We made a lot of mistakes on our defence in the second half. I am really proud of my guys. I think, France looked like a medalist."

KRISTAPS JANICENOKS (LATVIA PLAYER):

"We made too many mistakes in defence in third quarter. Now we are under pressure, but we are ready for the next game. Tomorrows game against Germany will be the most important game for us. We will try to win."

VINCENT COLLET (FRANCE COACH):

"Todays game was a very big fight. We didn't give up during all match. We did a good job on offense. De Colo had a day, he shot well from three-points in important moments."

NICOLAS BATUM (FRANCE PLAYER):

"All game we were agressive and we focused on defence. We shot the ball pretty well. It was a difficult game for us, because in the beginning we did not score, as the ball did not want to go in.  We had pressure to win the game - from ourselves, from fans. It helped us and I think it will help us to win our game tomorrow."

Latvia look to get their EuroBasket 2009 on track as they face off with France hoping to bag their first victory of the Preliminary Round Group B.

The last-minute qualifiers France meanwhile will secure a berth in the Qualifying Round if they can collect their second straight win.

Latvian coach Kestutis Kemzura admitted after his team's 81-68 opening loss against Russia that the Baltic team too often seemed lost on the floor. The fact that his NBA center Andris Biedrins was strapped with two early fouls and collected just six points and six rebounds did not help things.

As if the poor opening showing was not motivation enough, Biedrins will have even more drive knowing he will be squaring off against fellow NBA center Ronny Turiaf, with whom he played last season with the Golden State Warriors.

Biedrins will also be needed after Latvia were out-rebounded 33-30 by the smaller Russian team.

Vincent Collet's French on the other hand out-rebounded a tall German side 46-32, including 15 offensive rebounds, led by 14 total rebounds by Turiaf.

Down the stretch, the French did an excellent job opening up Tony Parker for shots and opportunities to get to the free throw line and the NBA star guard scored France's final 11 points of the game. Latvia must find a way to keep Parker under wraps to have a chance.

Also, with so many excellent low post players in this contest, another major key could be three-point shooting as both teams would like to create some extra space for their big men.

Head to Head: France and Latvia are 2-2 all time - though they have not faced off at the European Championship since 1939. The teams faced off in the EuroBasket 2003 Semi-Final Round.

Last Time Out: Latvia lost their opener against Russia 81-68 while France held on to beat Germany 70-65.

Key Match-up: Kristers Valters vs. Tony Parker. Point guard Valters was unable to stop Russian playmaker Sergey Bykov from scoring 22 points and dishing four assists in Latvia's loss against Russia. Parker meanwhile burned Germany for 19 points, six rebounds and four assists.

X-Factor: Andris Biedrins.  Latvia's NBA big man was hampered with foul trouble early against Russia on his way collecting just six points, six rebounds and one block in 22 minutes. Biedrins must bounce back if Latvia hope to grab their first victory.

Key stat: 18 of 33. France made just 55 percent of their free throws in a five-point victory over Germany.

Sounding off:  "It was a tough loss (against Russia) for us. But still we have a second and a third chance. We didn't play as we expected and how we can. But we have potential. We have to find the heart inside of every player and fight again. There is no other way. We came here to fight for every game." -Latvia coach Kestutis Kemzura