Trailing 42-50 at the break, the Piraeus club won against the Villeurbannais this Tuesday, in Greece, during the ninth day of the Euroleague.
Although decimated by injuries, Asvel led by Théo Maledon put up a heroic fight in the Olympiakos room which they ended up losing, knocked out in particular by Evan Fournier to suffer a fifth defeat in a row in the Euroleague (94 -92), Tuesday. The Villeurbannais remain stuck at the bottom of the ranking (2 wins for 7 defeats) and continue to lose the benefit of their good start to the season.
However, they raised their heads after two defeats at home and despite the absence of several injured major players (De Colo, Sako, Lee, Edwin Jackson, Levin Ajinça): buoyed by their 3-point skill (11/21) and Maledon , author of his points record in the Euroleague (31 at 4/8 long distance, 37 evaluation), they were up to 14 points ahead (63-49, 25th), led by the end of the 1st minute in the 38th and even had the equalizing ball at the last second. Sasha Vezenkov (21 pts and 4 assists) missed his two free throws and the opportunity to close the game five seconds from the buzzer, but Asvel did not take advantage of it, Maledon’s long pass not finding under the Mbaye Ndiaye basket.
Fournier gains momentum
Before this cruel end to the match, the Villeurbannais were unable to resist the return of the Greeks in the wake of Fournier who, four days after his major performance in the hall of the great rival Panathinaikos (22 pts including 8 in the money-time ), confirmed its rise to power.
The international fullback (20 pts and 3 interceptions) brought his team closer at the end of the third quarter with two winning shots, including one from more than eight meters (71-73), before proving decisive again in the final period. He notably returned his two free throws 12 seconds from time to give his team a crucial five lengths lead (94-89).
