The Metropolitans 92 in Betclic Elite, it’s over. Beaten on their floor against Chalon-sur-Saône this Sunday evening (75-83), the Boulogne-Levallois club is now condemned to switch to Pro B. A victory would not have changed anything because Roanne had imposed a little earlier against Cholet. A logical outcome after a catastrophic season for the former team of Victor Wembanyama and Bilal Coulibaly, who accumulated defeats and headed for disaster from the first meetings. Here are some figures that illustrate this sad year.
1
Only one player from the 2022-2023 squad remained at the club for a new season. This is the captain, Lahaou Konaté, who therefore welcomed a new staff and many new teammates. In addition to Bilal Coulibaly and Victor Wembanyama, who joined the NBA, Bandja Sy left for Paris Basketball, while Hugo Besson played in Serbia then in Italy.
6
In total, six players jumped ship in the middle of the season. Dee Bost (October 29), Grant Sherfield (November 1), Josh Carlton (December 19), Amar Gegic (in December), Jordan Theodore (who announced his departure during training at the end of January) and Alen Omic (left in beginning of the week), all playing for a new club. Matthieu Gauzin could also have left the club to join Nancy, but the League refused to validate his transfer.
12
Arriving to replace Vincent Collet, who preferred to concentrate on the French team in this Olympic year, Laurent Foirest only lasted a few months at the head of the Metropolitans 92. In twelve matches, he only led his players only one small victory, which pushed his managers to fire him. The Frenchman was eventually replaced by Jean-Paul Besson, who initially held the role on an interim basis before being confirmed.
25
On the floor too, this season was catastrophic. Unable to disrupt opposing teams, the Mets 92 accumulated defeats and quickly sank in the standings. In 29 matches, Lahaou Konaté’s teammates have lost 25. A depressing total. For comparison, Fos-sur-Mer, last season, had only lost 24 times in 34 matches.
90
The Boulonnais defense has been permeable all season. On average, the Mets 92 gave up 90 runs per game. Conversely, they only averaged 78. A differential that is far too important to hope to achieve a few additional victories and, thus, maintain their place among the elite.
10 400
If the athlete was not enough, the Boulogne-Levallois club was also sanctioned from a financial point of view. Guilty of having authorized amendments in the players’ contracts, which allowed them to leave the club under certain conditions, the Mets 92 had to pay a fine of 10,400 euros. This followed the aborted transfer of Matthieu Gauzin to Nancy.
