“It’s been a tough one, because Asvel is very athletic, their guards have the ability to create a lot and sometimes we didn’t defend well and we didn’t hit open shots,” Coach Ettore Messina said at the end of Olimpia’s fifth win in a row, 92-84 over Asvel Villeurbanne. “But somehow we kept our composure, we pretty much controlled the game. It is a win that is significant for what it means to the growth of our team,” he added. Olimpia took the lead late in the second period. Several time attempted to get separation with Asvel, but the French team lead by Theo Maledon’s 24 points kept coming back. Riding a Joffrey Lauvergne big night, Asvel took the lead late in the third but it lasted one possession. Armoni Brooks hit a huge corner three on the ensuing possession and the lead was regained. However, even a couple of 11-point leads in the fourth were not enough. Entering into the last 90 seconds of the game, Asvel was back within three. Nico Mannion. who had another big game and especially another monster second half, attacked Andre Roberson off the dribble, one of the best specialist even at the NBA level. He jump stopped on a dime, absorbed the foul and made the mid-range jumper. The three-point play proved to be decisive.
Olimpia struggled to hit its threes early in the game. In the first half, the team went 3-for-13 from deep, but got into some rhytm in the second half, making seven out of 12. Nikola Mirotic came up big in the fourth quarter with a couple of huge three. Another crucial one came from a very disciplined and effective Shavon Shields. Armoni Brooks was on fire from the beginning (he had 14 points) and Fabien Causeur made another spectacular step back after another spectacular night.
The Frenchman at 37 is having a career year. After his stellar game over Red Star when he went 6-for-6 from deep range, he had nine points (reaching 2,500 for his career, Shavon Shields has now 2,000), but was all over the floor defensively. He had an impressive six steals and three assists. One of them was a behind the back pass on a fastbreak situation that made people crazy at Unipol Forum. “Diop was huge too – Messina remarked – He didn’t play much lately but he was ready. He gave us then extremely efficient minutes.” Diop came in because Freddie Gillespie struggled with the fouls. He scored eight points, working hard inside.
Olimpia is now taking its five-game winning streak in Barcelona and the Panathinaikos before hosting Bayern. All these teams are in front or tied in the standings. So, it is a crucial stretch of games. Olimpia has also won seven of its last eight games.
