Who can stop the capital club, the newborn of the Euroleague? Obviously, not the leader himself. First in the standings before this Friday’s meeting, undefeated in its lair of the Palau Blaugrana with four victories, FC Barcelona fell on its floor against an intractable Paris for a month (103-87).
No one in the season had yet inflicted 100 points on the Barcelona side, and at home it was rather the Blaugrana who distributed the scores with wide margins. But the Parisians, after a strong first quarter, accelerated again at the end of the match to take off and offer themselves a new success, the sixth in a row.
With now seven victories, for three defeats, Tiago Splitter’s men are above all on par with the European leaders, and also surpass their opponent of the evening while settling into the Top 4.
A great TJ Shorts
The Catalans very quickly understood that the Parisian club was not there to play small arms. 31-18 at the end of the first quarter, high intensity and TJ Shorts in the spotlight (10 points, 3 assists, 4/4 on free throws), Paris basketball quickly made its mark.
The 27-year-old leader quickly established himself as the great architect of this meeting, at the end of which he finished with 24 points, 9/11 success on free throws, 9 assists, all for an evaluation of 36. “I felt in rhythm, everyone trusted me, it was a good day for me but everyone made big moves to win this match,” commented the main player after the match.
Great efficiency in the second period
Clumsy at the start of the match with three points when Barça, back in shape, also took advantage of the winning shots to get back together and have the advantage at the break (48-45), the Parisians adjusted their sights afterwards (9/ 23). They also demonstrated almost perfect skill at free throws (20/23).
Moreover, two long-range shots from Maodo Lo (20 pts, 5 rebounds) allowed his team to get back in front during the third quarter (69-65), in front of a small contingent of Parisian supporters who took over the stands of the Barcelona.
Still under the leadership of TJ Shorts, Paris then raced to the score and towards a new feat, further proof that the capital club is certainly not in the Euroleague by chance.
