Betting on Rio: France (Under 85.5) v. China

France (Under 85.5)

France lost in the opening round to Australia, 87-66. Tony Parker finished with 18, but the talented Australian front court dominated inside, limiting French bigs Rudy Gobert and Boris Diaw to 5 points apiece. The strength of the Chinese team also lies in their front court, with 7 footer Yi Jinalian dropping 25 in their opening game against the US. The Chinese have two other 7-footers, Zhou Qi and Wang Zhelin, both of whom were selections in this years NBA draft.

Don't get me wrong, Zhou Qi and Wang Zhelin are not on the same level as Andrew Bogut and Aron Baynes. But I think they are formidable enough to have the same effect. The French will need to rely on outside shooting to score, which has been a struggle of late. They hit only 4 of 14 from deep in the opening game against Australia, and sot just 26.6% from three In Olympic qualifying.

The French will beat the Chinese, but shouldn't eclipse the 85 point mark.