Aug. 7, 2012

LONDON – Former South Carolina women’s basketball center Ilona Burgrova was the Czech Republic’s second-leading scorer, but her 16 points were not enough to move on to the semifinals of the 2012 London Olympics as France escaped with a 71-68 win Tuesday afternoon. The Czech Republic had a 10-point lead going into the final quarter before the French rallied for the three-point victory.

Bugrová’s contribution was steady throughout the game as she scored in every quarter, including six points in the third, during which the Czech Republic surged ahead by outscoring the French 23-13. She added six rebounds and three assists to her team’s effort.

The Czech Republic saw its 10-point lead begin to dwindle midway through the fourth quarter. The French were within four points with just under five minutes left to play and hit five free throws, one to convert a traditional three-point play, to take a 64-63 lead with 3:22 on the clock. The Czech Republic had the next four looks at the basket, but could only convert one. It was a Burgrová layup that made it a 65-64 advantage with 2:03 to go. France’s Celine Dumerc hit a 3, and a Czech Republic turnover led to Endene Miyem’s jumper to stretch the French lead to 69-65 in the final 25 seconds. Burgrová scored her team’s final points of the night on a layup with 15 seconds left, but the Czech Republic could not get another possession before time expired.

Burgrová finished her Olympics with 7.8 points per game on 40.9 percent shooting from the field. She reeled in 2.7 rebounds per game and blocked 10 shots over her six games of action. Burgrová scored in double figures twice, netting her personal high of 19 against Croatia in pool play in addition to Tuesday’s 16 against France.