Monaco took over the lead in the Betclic Elite thanks to their success on the Roanne floor (74-85). ASVEL, for its part, spoiled the party at the Paris-La Défense Arena by winning against Nanterre (61-82).
Monaco regains its ease. While Boulogne-Levallois had reduced the gap this Friday with a short success against Nancy, the “Roca Team” brought back the victory from their trip to Roanne. If the Chorale started strong with a 5-0, the players of the Principality were able to fight back to conclude the first quarter with a margin of eight units. Jaron Blossomgame’s teammates (18 points) kept Roanne at bay during the ten minutes leading up to the break, but a 6-0 conceded just before the return to the locker room instilled doubt. Under the impetus of Ronald March (26 points, 5 rebounds), the Chorale managed to regain the advantage on the scoreboard at the very beginning of the third quarter.
However, Sasa Obradovic’s players have regained their seriousness and left this to the rank of a simple incident. Approaching the last ten minutes of the match with a six-length advantage, the “Roca Team” first played to scare each other. Indeed, Roanne launched the hostilities with an 8-0 to come back in front of the score but Monaco replied with a 13-0 which put an end to the suspense. In effect, the leader of Betclic Elite wins with an eleven point lead (74-85) and takes two successes ahead of the Metropolitans. Roanne, beaten for the second time in three games, remains in the Top 8 but with a slim margin over Limoges and Strasbourg.
16,319 people. 🏟️👏#BetclicELITE #LNBextra @Nanterre92 pic.twitter.com/h9G1drw1le
— LNB (@LNBofficiel) March 12, 2023
ASVEL played the spoilsport
On the side of Nanterre, who will have to compose without his trainer Pascal Donnadieu at the end of next season, the party has turned sour. On the floor installed in the Paris-La Défense Arena, the Hauts-de-Seine club conceded a second defeat in a row when they received ASVEL. A meeting that the players of TJ Parker started with a bang with a 15-4 entry. Affected, the teammates of Bastien Pinault (14 points) were able to respond at the very end of the first quarter to return to only four lengths. Giving a boost, the Villeurbannais again exceeded the bar of ten points from the start of the ten minutes before half-time but without being able to keep up the pace.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Nanterre gradually got closer to find his locker room with the same gap of four units. It was a transfigured ASVEL team that found the floor. Amine Noua (17 points, 6 rebounds) and his teammates changed gear with a 15-0 very early in the third quarter to flirt and then exceed the 20-point lead. A series that was the coup de grace for the Ile-de-France residents. Indeed, if they fought with all their might, they were never able to come back into contact. ASVEL won by 21 units (61-82) and signed a third victory in a row. Nanterre, for its part, will continue to look behind, still having the same record as Nancy, first relegated.
