From Roanne to Team France, Isaac Guedegbe presents the U18 European Vice-Champions

After an intense journey filled with joy, scares and twists, the French U18 team left EuroBasket 2025 with silver medals around their necks. Beaten at the wire by Spain (81-82) in the final, Les Bleuets, led by their captain Isaac Guedegbe (1.78m, 17 years old), left their mark on the competition. Having come through Roanne’s youth academy and now point guard for JL Bourg, Guedegbe looks back on this Serbian campaign and profiles each of his teammates who helped secure this European second place.

Who are the U18 EuroBasket 2025 European Vice-Champions?

Maxence Lemoine (1.88m, 18 years old): « He’s a real leader both on and off the court. An offensive leader capable of scoring and also playing for others, making smart plays. He’s also a great defender, he was a tremendous asset during this Euro. »

Yaël Masdieu-Reynaert (1.90m, 17 years old): « He’s a very cheerful person in life. He brought lots of positive energy, always laughing or joking around. On the court, he’s a point guard capable of organizing play, putting the ball where it needs to be, when it needs to be there. He can also hit big shots that can sometimes surprise. »

Adam Atamna (1.95m, 17 years old): « He was our main offensive leader. Unfortunately he was injured in the second game. He had to change roles, stayed with us and was able to contribute off the court. Lots of positive energy and he pushed us to never give up. Even though he couldn’t continue playing, he was still a very important asset. »

Tom Audry (1.98m, 17 years old): « He’s quite discreet in everyday life, and on the court too. But when he comes in, he’s super impactful. He often does the dirty work: getting offensive rebounds, making cuts and in the end you might not notice him. But when you watch the game, you think: ‘how important was he.' »

Bastien Grasshoff (1.98m, 18 years old): « He managed to step up, especially with Adam Atamna’s injury. He took on that scoring role so to speak. As we saw during the Euro, he’s someone who can catch fire, particularly in the game against Turkey where he got us out of a tough spot. He’s a very smiley and positive person. »

Meissa Faye (1.99m, 17 years old): « He controls his emotions well, very cool-headed. He’s able to bring good energy when needed. Very versatile on the court. He can play off-ball, hit catch-and-shoot threes, step-back threes or big dunks. He can play multiple positions, he even filled in at the 4 during the competition. He had a great tournament and was very important. »

Hugo Yimga-Moukouri (2.04m, 17 years old): « Hugo is physically very impressive. We know he’s a 2008, but appearance-wise you might think he’s 2007 or older. Similarly, he controls his emotions well, staying cool regardless of what happens during the game. Very versatile, a complete defender capable of guarding all positions. »

Cameron Houindo (2.05m, 17 years old): « Monster… I don’t really know how else to describe him. You can see it on the court, he has incredible bounce. It’s easy to play with him when he’s on the court, he takes up so much space and for a point guard like me, it’s perfect. No matter how you throw the ball up to him, we know he’ll catch it and put it in the basket. »

Jonas Boulefaa (2.03m, 18 years old): « He’s very mature, both in everyday life and in his game. We know he’ll start his first professional year at Blois next year. I think he’s more than ready for it. He’s very smart on the court, knows where to position himself. He also has a very reliable 3-point shot. »

Jahel Trefle (2.08m, 17 years old): « Jahel suffered a concussion during preparation. So he missed most of the prep, only returning after almost three weeks off at the Euro. So it was naturally a difficult return, after so much time off it’s never easy to come back. But he managed to adapt and take on a role perhaps different from what he would have had originally. But he was still impactful when we needed him. He managed to grab important rebounds and make crucial baskets. »

Elie Ntowoa (2.00m, 17 years old): « He didn’t get a lot of playing time but he was still very important. His entries were very impactful every time. He’s not necessarily someone in the spotlight but he’s a great game facilitator. With good screens or interceptions that free up our attackers, for example. »

Élise Prodhomme: « She was incredible throughout this campaign. The team was hit by injuries and many other internal issues during the competition. She always knew how to reassure us and remained herself, offering us very fluid basketball. Of course, surrounded by a staff that contributed greatly to this. Élise obviously played an important role, but her staff around her helped her a lot. I have very good memories of it and she was a coach I really appreciated. »