The appeals chamber of the French Basketball Federation (FFBB) has reformed the federal decision to replay the Betclic Elite match won on October 20 by Chalon-sur-Saône against Asvel (109-107 after three overtimes), AFP learned Tuesday from the FFBB.
The incredible match between Chalon-sur-Saône and Asvel (109-107 after three overtimes) will ultimately not be re-contested. The Villeurbanne club filed a complaint after this match, following which the high-level federal officials commission ordered the match to be replayed. Chalon-sur-Saône, which had won its only victory until then in the championship, immediately appealed this decision.
A free throw story
Asvel’s complaint related to a substitution that it had requested 8 seconds from the end of the last quarter: instead of being made before the two free throws awarded to Joffrey Lauvergne, it had not been between his two attempts. The Villeurbanne interior had missed its first attempt and Asvel, then leading (79-74), argued that it should have benefited from two new throws, once the change was granted by the referees.
The federation’s appeals chamber ruled that the referees had not made a “bad assessment of the situation”, since the sound signal requesting the substitution had been covered by the noise of the public. She also felt that Lauvergne was not hampered during his first free throw attempt. Asvel expressed its “surprise” and “astonishment” in a press release on Tuesday but “decided to take note of this decision and concentrate on the rest of its season”. Chalon-sur-Saône therefore retains its four victories in the ranking, which place it just ahead of the 15th and jump-off, Le Portel.
