Cholet Basket opened their Basketball Champions League campaign with a convincing 99-79 victory over Hapoel Holon on Tuesday night in Samokov, powered by a historic performance from 17-year-old guard Amadou Fall. BeBasket reported that the young French prospect notched 15 points in just 16 minutes off the bench, becoming only the second player under the age of 18 to score at least 15 points in a single BCL fixture.
Cholet Overcomes Early Deficit with Second-Quarter Surge
The contest began with Hapoel Holon seizing the initiative. Playing away from home due to the security situation in Israel, the Israeli club leaned on Adama Sanogo to establish a 23-19 lead after the opening ten minutes. Cholet responded decisively in the second quarter, completely flipping the momentum by outscoring their opponents 33-9. That dominant stretch sent the French side into halftime with a comfortable 52-32 advantage.
Mohamed Diarra led all scorers in the match with 23 points for Cholet, while Sanogo countered with 22 points and 13 rebounds for Holon. Having built a 20-point cushion before the break, Cholet maintained their margin through the second half to seal the 99-79 win, matching their halftime differential almost to the exact point.
Amadou Fall Makes History in European Debut
Fall capitalized on an expanded opportunity in Europe just three days after logging five scoreless minutes in a Betclic ELITE victory over Nancy. Against Holon, his playing time tripled, and his efficiency scaled accordingly. BeBasket reported that Fall shot 3-of-4 from the field, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc, and converted all seven of his free-throw attempts. He added 3 rebounds and 5 assists to finish with an 18 efficiency rating, though he also committed 4 turnovers.
His scoring output placed him alongside Alperen Sengun as the only teenagers in league history to cross the 15-point threshold in a BCL game. Sengun previously accomplished the feat three times during the 2019-2020 season with Turkish club Bandirma.
Youth Movement Shines in Group F Opener
Cholet’s rotation featured a notable historic milestone alongside Fall. Fellow 17-year-old guard Aaron Towo-Nansi also logged more than 15 minutes on the floor, joining Fall to make Cholet only the second team in BCL history to feature two under-18 players for extended minutes in the same fixture. Bandirma previously achieved the milestone twice in March 2020 with Furkan Haltali and Sengun.
While Fall provided instant offense, Towo-Nansi impacted the game through distribution and defense. In 22 minutes of action, Towo-Nansi did not attempt a field goal but handed out 5 assists—sharing the team high with Fall—while grabbing 2 rebounds, collecting 4 interceptions, and blocking 1 shot, alongside 4 turnovers. Together, the two teenagers accounted for 10 of Cholet’s 20 total assists.
Victory Follows Win at Nancy
The victory also follows closely on the heels of an 85-76 domestic win at Nancy.
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