Sasa Obradovic, coach of Monaco, qualified for the Betclic Élite final after beating Bourg-en-Bresse in match 4 of the semi-finals (71-76): “I haven’t always found the right player associations. Every match something falls on our heads and we have to compensate. This evening Mam Jaiteh makes her return and contributes without having carried out any training in two weeks. We played without our best players throughout the season. Right now Motiejunas is not here, our key players are not in their best form. I hope we will find some rhythm again for the final. If we had had to play another match against this Bourg team, I don’t know how we would have done it.
They made some difficult shots tonight, we didn’t attack too well. Matthew (Strazel) was very good. He’s a mature player, he knows what to do, what to ask for as a system, he knows how to behave on the pitch. It allows us to be where we are today. It’s a lot of math, real-time decision-making. We are obviously going to watch match 5 between Paris and Asvel but above all we have to worry about ourselves. (On Monaco playing a third final in three years) I don’t think anyone really respects this achievement. Nobody tells us we’re doing a good job. There are many other things that need to be recognized before that. We’re having a superb season but no one will tell us. We promote basketball in the best way possible. »
Matthew Strazel, Monaco leader: “It was like last year, even though we won 3-0, I remember that the last two matches we fought to get the victories. This is a team that is gaining strength. Respect. At 49-43 it could have been momentum for them. We made stops after this run by looking for mistakes, getting closer to the basket. That’s what great teams do. We were solid at the end of the match. I am happy. I have a role that changes from one match to the next. Two days ago I didn’t have many responsibilities, this evening I did. It’s a reflection of my season, I try to respond when asked. I’m glad we were able to do it.
All these efforts will have been for nothing if we don’t go all the way in the final. It’s my fourth final in four seasons (and three titles), I don’t want to hurt my eye. It’s cool. There are three matches to win. I’m happy to reach the end. (On Zaccharie Risacher) He was huge, I followed his season a lot, he was huge in the Eurocup, with crazy percentages. Beyond that he had an impact on his team, he managed to be a leader on the pitch, Freddy (Fauthoux) gave him a lot of confidence. (On the opponent in the final) If we play Asvel I would be very happy, there are a lot of people I know there. But we lost against Paris in the Leaders Cups. We have a week to work, recover, stay focused. We will use this time to get ahead of Paris or Villeurbanne. »
Frédéric Fauthoux, coach of Bourg-en-Bresse: “In the four matches we played eye to eye with a big team. From France and Europe. With our own problems too, without all our weapons. It’s a real pride to see our guys go all the way, playing very good basketball. It’s appreciable, in a good state of mind. It’s a group that we would like to have every year, with chemistry and understanding. It was unfortunately not enough against Monaco. We could have made differences, been a little better, shot a few more shots. (A season without a title for Bourg) I believe that to win a trophy you have to maintain consistency, you will have to do X years like this, one day it will smile on us.
If we want to win, everything must be aligned, the draw for the Coupe de France for example. I don’t remember that we didn’t win a trophy. We experienced more than incredible emotions, it’s part of the job. There was real sharing, we saw players blossom in our team. Isiaha (Mike), I also think of Zac (Risacher), who will leave us. I would like to thank the group who accompanied him this year. We had not created a team for him but with him. There are many players who put their ego aside, who accompanied him, who spoke to him. It is a real pride with my staff to have created a collective atmosphere. It’s been a more than successful season. »
2024-05-30 22:49:48
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