The Boulazacois knew it. So for this first match against a big caliber of the Betclic…
The Boulazacois knew it. So for this first match against a big caliber of the Betclic Elite, during the New Aquitaine Tournament, the desire to do well was significant from the start. “It was not so bad to fall against Limoges which put us in a position to do well from the start”, slipped Alexandre Ménard, the Périgourdin coach.
Deeply renewed, the Greens of Massimo Cancellieri were probably a little too eager to qualify for the final against the rivals of Élan Béarnais, winners a little winded (96-89) from Tarbes. And it was logical that the Boulazacois were already taking off with shots from Nicolas de Jong, who won in the racket, then from Baptiste Tchouaffé (10-2, 6th).
A gap that Alexandre Ménard’s men maintained thanks to the five Moore, Tchouaffé, Cortale (in place of Cassier, delicately with a finger), Cavallo and de Jong.
The 100 mark
Despite the predictable reaction of the Limougeauds (21-16, 10th), who suffered the defensive impact of the BBD, the Boulazacois led the dance until the break (43-38) with the address of Moore, Billong and the audacity of young Aricique.
So it doesn’t matter that the bench of Limoges is richer. After the break, Munnings came out too early (unsportsmanlike and technical, 25th) followed by Cavallo and the two passers (Moore and Billong) late in the game. Boulazac held firm and lined up some highlights like when Moore and Tchouaffé made the stands shudder (55-49, 26th).
In the last quarter, the BBD remained glued to the CSP (67-69, 34th; 74-75, 37th) and was 76-78 at 12 small seconds from the siren… But Bryce Jones lined up the last two free throws of the victory for the Limougeauds (76-80).
It was on the same bases of commitment and collective that Boulazac gave the cover on Sunday August 28, for the small final against Tarbes. Alexandre Ménard’s team led from start to finish against the residents of Nationale 1.
The match was balanced until the break (37-45 at the break) before leaning completely to the advantage of BBD in the second half when Cortale burst, in the 37th, the ceiling of 100 points before Tchouaffé finished the job (65-108). All good before the next test against Orléans, Thursday September 1st.
