Victor Wembanyama scored eight of his 18 points in overtime to ensure France edged Japan 94-90 to maintain their unbeaten start at the Paris Olympics.
Japan looked set to cause an unlikely upset against the hosts, but Matthew Strazel's four-point play with 10 seconds of the fourth quarter remaining spared their blushes.
"The shot of his life," Wembanyama said on Strazel's shot that sent the game into overtime at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium in Lille.
Wembanyama then took centre stage, scoring the first eight points of overtime to give France a 92-84 cushion.
Japan would battle back and got to within two points of their opponents, but the home team were able to close out the contest at the free throw line.
Wembanyama also finished with 11 rebounds and six assists, and recalled the moment when the encounter changed in overtime.
"The realisation, the dynamic of the game," Wembanyama said.
"They were playing like underdogs and we were waiting for them to punch a little bit too much. I wanted to make a point and punch first in overtime. And it worked."
France remained in second place in Group B behind fellow unbeaten nation Germany, with the pair squaring off this Friday to see who will finish on top.
Dennis Schroder starred for Germany in the final game on Tuesday, as the Brooklyn Nets point guard notched 20 points and six assists in their 86-73 win over Brazil.
France set up Olympics quarter-final with Argentina following New Zealand win
France set up a quarter-final meeting with Argentina at the Paris Olympics after topping Group A with a comfortable 3-0 win over New Zealand in Marseille.
Thierry Henry's side remain the only side in the tournament to win all of their games so far, and made light work of their opponents on Tuesday.
Jean-Philippe Mateta, who captained the side with Alexandre Lacazette on the bench, started off the scoring after the ball bundled its way into his path before finishing beyond Alex Paulsen in the 19th minute.
In a game that saw Les Bleus accumulate 34 shots at the Orange Velodrome, their dominance was rewarded with two quickfire goals late on.
Desire Doue would double the hosts' advantage from close range, with Arnaud Kalimuendo rounding off the scoring three minutes later to see France remain perfect.
France's triumph saw them win their first three games at the Games for the first time in their history, while also keeping three clean sheets on the spin for the first time at the Olympics.
In the other Group A encounter, the United States qualified for the knockout stages of the tournament for the first time since 2000 as they eased to a 3-0 win over Guinea.
A rampant start to the encounter saw Djordje Mihailovic and Kevin Paredes have Marko Mitrovic's two goals to the good just after the half-hour mark.
Despite finishing the encounter with just 37.8% possession, the United States were clinical in the final third as Paredes put the game beyond doubt in the 75th minute.
They return to action this Friday when they face Group B winners Morocco, who clinched top spot with a 3-0 win over Iraq while also finishing ahead of Argentina.
Curry: USA have 'appropriate fear' for South Sudan after exhibition win
Stephen Curry has made it clear the United States have "appropriate fear" ahead of their upcoming encounter with South Sudan at the Paris Olympics.
Curry, who helped Team USA to an opening 110-84 win over Serbia, echoed a sentiment pushed by his Golden State Warriors coach, Steve Kerr.
Ahead of the Games, the USA endured a stern test against Wednesday's opponents earlier this month, narrowly avoiding a huge upset with a 101-100 victory in London.
South Sudan are making their first appearance at the Olympics, and got their campaign up and running with a 90-79 triumph over Puerto Rico.
Despite South Sudan not having any current NBA players on their roster, they have plenty of experience within their ranks.
The likes of Wenyen Gabriel, JT Thor and Marial Shayok all shone in their pre-tournament meeting with the USA, with Curry acknowledging a tough task lies ahead.
"We have appropriate fear," said Curry. "We know we can't just sleepwalk through any game and feel like you're going to win."
While the USA are still the clear favourites to win the encounter at the Stade Pierre Mauroy, head coach Kerr said their previous encounter will be to their advantage this time around.
"They came within one shot of beating us," Kerr said.
"I'm really glad that we played them so we can feel their speed and their 3-point shooting ability and feel how good they are."
"We'll be much better prepared [Wednesday]. But doesn't guarantee anything."
During their pre-tournament encounter, South Sudan scored 14 3-pointers against the Americans, making 10 more against Puerto Rico last time out.
"The exhibition schedule was great because you got to figure out where we need to get better and also feel the force of teams that are coming trying to beat us," Curry said.
"They're a very high-octane offense, spread the floor, shoot a lot of 3s and have athleticism. So you just got to be mindful of how to guard them. It's totally different than Serbia."
Antetokounmpo on the brink of Olympics exit as Spain down Greece
Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 27 points but could not lead Greece to victory as they lost 84-77 to Spain at the Paris Olympics.
Two-time NBA MVP Antetokounmpo was the driving force behind Greece qualifying for the Games, but they are on the brink of an early exit after suffering their second defeat in Group A.
Antetokounmpo was in fine form, adding 11 rebounds to his tally, but Spain, who also lost their opening game, just had too much.
Spain were inspired by Memphis Grizzlies forward Santi Aldama, who registered 19 points and 12 rebounds.
They are up to third in the group, and will face table-topping Canada in their next fixture. Greece, on the other hand, must now beat Australia to stand a chance of progressing and keeping Antetokounmpo's Olympic dream alive.
In Tuesday's other Group A game, Canada overcame Australia 93-83, with R.J. Barrett of the Toronto Raptors scoring 24 points.
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