In late matches of Betclic ÉLITE, Lyon-Villeurbanne and Strasbourg provided the essential against Nanterre and Le Portel.
The champion is getting closer to the head
And six! Who will stop Lyon-Villeurbanne in 2022? Since their misstep in the last game of the year against Limoges, the French champions have been unplayable in Betclic ÉLITE. And yet, Nanterre did everything well this Friday evening at the Astroballe, to the point of taking the Rhodaniens into overtime (77-77 but 91-95 defeat in the end). Pascal Donnadieu’s men especially had the misfortune to come across one of the biggest players in the championship in a state of grace: Chris Jones, author of 24 points at 10/17, 11 assists and 3 interceptions. Well supported by his interiors James Gist (16 points at 7/8) and Youssoupha Fall (10 points and 10 rebounds), the former leader of Maccabi Tel-Aviv allowed his team to get rid of a magnificent Ile-de-France team, taken by an excellent major five, all between 14 and 18 units. In view of Sunday’s derby in Bourg-en-Bresse, scheduled in less than 43 hours, having played 45 minutes is not necessarily excellent news for ASVEL but the essential is at the end: a sixth success in a row which further increases the pressure on the leader Boulogne-Levallois.
The Portel stopped
Three weeks after being surprised at the Rhénus by the Porteloise red lantern, Strasbourg went to take revenge at the Cauldron (88-84). But since then, the context was totally different for the Stellists: the ESSM remained on four victories in a row and had pulled out of last place. Either a real nice blow for the SIG, fomented in the last quarter with a series that led up to seven points ahead (78-85, 39th minute). Recent rookies Jordan Howard and Kameron Taylor both split 13 units but it was Matt Mitchell who was the hero of the evening, with 21 points at 6/8 and 4 rebounds. Opposite, Devin Davis excelled (21 points and 7 rebounds) but that was not enough. Eric Girard’s men miss the opportunity to get out of the red zone.
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