he’s a little piece of the United States that arrived last summer at Basket Landes. Alexis Peterson, 1.65 m and everything of a great American point guard, talent and attitude included. There is nothing pejorative in this sentence: her stylish celebrations and her way of “hyper” crowding contributed to the fact that the Mitterrand space in Mont-de-Marsan so quickly adopted and adored her. That and its performance, of course. We will still have to bring out an XXL this Sunday to gain 5 points in Tarbes and take the club to the LFB final for the first time since 2021.
On the way out and despite an anti-Peterson plan with sometimes three players on her, the American leader managed to score her 13 points (4/7 on shots), take her five fouls and keep her Basket Landes alive. Five days before, in the Coupe de France final against Bourges, she was one if not the only Landes player at the level. All season, “Lex” amazed everyone and carried the blue and white club on his back several times.
The fault or the points
A leader-scorer above all, Alexis Peterson knows how to score almost any way, penetrating under the basket, mid-distance on one foot, from behind the line. Another major asset: his ability to look for faults. A way to get easy throws and therefore easy points, but also to annoy opponents. “Sometimes she maybe exaggerates a little. But find me a player in LFB who doesn’t do that. You have to know how to do this kind of thing. It’s a veteran thing,” points out Shona Thorburn, assistant coach to Julie Barennes.
“Lex” knows how to play with his attitude to carry the crowd.
Philippe Salvat/SO
Whether she scores or takes the foul, or both, “Lex” makes it known. Fingers pointing at his forearm to say “ice in my veins”; a mimed revolver after a 3-pointer – she is also nicknamed Pistol Pete – or a shush to Villeneuve-d’Ascq supporters: the star knows how to play with the crowd and the cameras. In the North, such an attitude earned him two technicals quite early in the match.
“When you see a player catch fire, you want to catch fire too”
“It’s more American but it’s happening little by little in France. They have more reactions, both good and bad things. She needs to know where the line is. But it can excite her teammates, continues Shona Thorburn. When you see a player catch fire, you want to catch fire too. It’s positive energy. »
Philippe Salvat/SO
Alexis Peterson and his captain Clarince Djaldi-Tabdi.
Everything for the win
That’s the tip of the Peterson iceberg, the one that the public sees and admires. But behind the whimsical player full of attitude hides a reserved, almost shy person, and obsessed with one thing: winning. ” Absolutely ! she confirms. This is why we do this, why we train so many hours, why we make so many sacrifices, why I’m away from my family for nine months of the year…” This season, Alexis Peterson missed a match to return to the United States for his grandfather’s funeral. “Two hours after the funeral, I had to take the plane back to France. »
The champion has the notion of effort, advocates a healthy lifestyle, puts her legs in recovery boots after each workout, orders specific programs from physical trainer Vincent Bop. “She wants muscle, she feels she is quite explosive. You have one of the best players in Europe in front of you, how can you prove her wrong…” testifies the “prep”.
To keep his mind up and stay on his path to victory, Alexis Peterson has two things: his faith and his partner, Kamiah Smalls, who plays in Villeneuve-d’Ascq. “She is the family I have here. We can lean on each other, we are both experiencing the same thing,” breathes the Landes leader. They could find themselves facing each other in the Women’s League final. “Lex” will have to make his American class speak against Tarbes first.
Disability to fill
Beaten at the end of a tense and not always spectacular match in the first leg, the Basket Landes players are five points behind before returning to the Espace Mitterrand in Mont-de-Marsan this Sunday, in a first leg format. return where the average point decides between the two teams if necessary. A slight handicap and within reach of Landaises who have been undefeated at home against French teams since March 2023. But who will have to show a different face than Thursday during the first leg.
The return on Sunday (2:30 p.m.) promises to be spiced up, both by the extremely high stakes and by the liabilities between two teams who will be playing their 5th match against each other this season. If the first leg saw a few clashes, it was especially the semi-final of the Coupe de France last March which sparked, with injuries, expulsions and an extension, finally won by Basket Landes (87-81) .
