Asvel came out of the black hole Thursday by dominating Fenerbahçe during the 17th day of Euroleague (84-82). The reigning French champion, who remained on four defeats in a row in the competition, overwhelmed a private Turkish formation during the match of his two stars Nando De Colo (wrist) and Jan Vesely (ankle).
The Villeurbannais (8 wins-9 losses) take the opportunity to take 9th place alone in front of their victim of the evening, halfway through the regular season.
They also decimated by injuries and completely voiceless for a month (barely 61 points on average over the four previous matches), TJ Parker’s men have finally regained the impact in attack, like a Chris Jones on fire, author of 27 points at 9/12 shooting including 3/4 behind the arc (30 evaluation). But they suffered in defense in the first two quarters, suffering several series against a confident opponent after four straight wins. At the break, Asvel was three lengths behind (43-46, 20th).
Endless video verification 6 seconds from the end
It was in the third quarter that the Villeurbanne made the difference under the leadership of their captain Charles Kahudi, who returned to the field after the restart despite a left ankle which had turned shortly before the break. After an award-winning basket from William Howard and a huge counter from Jones on Marial Shayok, they took a four-point lead (64-60, 30th).
However, they scared each other until the end in a roller coaster end of the game. Worn by the Italian Achille Polonara (21 pts, 11 rebounds), the “Fener” returned to the front three minutes from the end (74-75, 37th). Elie Okobo, very moved after the death of his grandfather on the morning of the match, widened a gap which seemed final (81-75, 39th) but at 6 seconds from the end, a shiver crossed the stands of the Astroballe during an interminable video verification of a foul by Kahudi, suspected of being unsportsmanlike (which would have given the Turks a victory ball).
The referees finally judged that the gesture was not reprehensible and the public could scream their joy. It had been twenty-two years since Asvel had beaten Fenerbahçe at home.
” It feels good, whispered TJ Parker. It was not easy to be on the move so often during this month of December. The working time we benefited from after the postponement of the match against Nanterre on Sunday served us well. We got together, we trained and we had a lot more energy tonight, we fought to the end. “
Next Thursday, his team will host Bayern Munich (13th, 7 wins-10 losses), another direct competitor for the play-off qualification.