Six days before the end of the Betclic Elite regular season, Boulogne-Levallois is virtually relegated to Pro B. Crushed by Le Portel on Saturday afternoon (79-104), the Metropolitans 92 recorded a 24th defeat in 28 matches. This, combined with the victory of Gravelines-Dunkerque in Cholet (84-72), almost seals the fate of the Ile-de-France club, which barely ten months ago filled Roland-Garros for the Championship final, led by a certain Victor Wembanyama. A defeat in the last six matches, or a success for the BCM – the two teams facing each other on the penultimate day, May 4 -, without forgetting Roanne and Blois, still in the fight, would mathematically send them into the ‘antechamber.
This is the fifth time this season, the second in a row, that Boulogne-Levallois has conceded more than 100 points to its opponents. The Portelois, behind five players with 13 points or more, including Bastien Vautier with 19 points in 19 minutes, enjoyed it. Their success, the fourth in a row, coupled with the Cholet defeat, allows them to grab 6th place to get closer to qualifying for the play-offs on which no one would have bet at the beginning of October, after a start to the season at the ‘against (0-5) for the club with the penultimate budget of the elite.
Gravelines surprises Cholet
After its defeat in the derby against the same Portelois (77-83), Gravelines relied on a good 3-point skill (10/19) and a dominant second quarter (26-16) to overcome a Cholet team undefeated in the Championship since February 10 and which recorded the returns of Tidjane Salaun (6 points, 4 assists in 24 minutes) and Nick Johnson (7 points, 5 assists in 21 minutes). Neal Sacko’s 23 points and 13 rebounds were not enough for the Mauges club. Opposite, six players, including Thomas Cornély (11 points, 6 assists, 4 steals) and Vafessa Fofana (16 points, 4 rebounds) exceeded the 10-unit mark.
Dark Roanne in Chalon
The BCM (15th, 10-18), gives itself a breath of fresh air while Roanne, first relegated (16th, 9-19), lost heavily in Burgundy to a direct competitor in the race for maintenance, at Chalon-sur-Saône (105-86), despite the new offensive demonstration from Sekou Doumbouya (29 points on 11 out of 16 shooting, 4 rebounds). But the dissonances of the Choir, since the start of the season, have always been in defense, where they allowed their host to easily exceed 100 points, led by Kaleb Wesson (23 points at 9/10, 7 rebounds) and the back pair Antoine Eito (12 points 7 assists) – Aleksej Nikolic (18 points, 7 assists).
McGusty saves Limoges
Not yet safe after a season marked by numerous extra-sporting problems, Limoges (12th, 12-14, 2 successes withdrawn on the green carpet for management problems) had the good taste to win at home against in Saint-Quentin (83-80), thanks to a 3-point shot a few tenths from the buzzer by Kameron McGusty (14 points). The unexpected epilogue, for the CSP, of a meeting that started in the wrong direction, after having taken the tide in the first half (38-53). But the Limougeauds took out the barbed wire after returning from the locker room (27 points conceded in the second half) and capitalized on the good games of Danilo Nikolic (20 points, 7 rebounds) and Nemanja Nenadic (14 points, 5 assists).
The promoted Saint-Quentinois clings to eighth place (14-15), followed closely by Strasbourg (13-15) who also gave in, on the side of Dijon (68-80, 18 points, 6 assists for David Holston). The JDA (tied 12th with Limoges, 12-16), which will meet the SIG in Bercy on April 27 for the final of the Coupe de France, ended a series of five losses in a row.
