After a dark series, Paris Basketball raised its head this Monday by defeating Limoges CSP (96-88) during the 14th day of Betclic ÉLITE. Still undefeated at home, the Parisians consolidate their place on the championship podium, behind Cholet and ASVEL.
The duo Tyson Ward – TJ Shorts carried the capital club in this momentous victory. Ward, in great form after a poor performance against ASVEL (4 points), signed a career record with 30 points (7/13 at 3-points, with 8 rebounds, or 32 rating), while that Shorts, omnipresent, added 26 points and 9 assists for 30 rating.
Limoges takes the lead at the break, Paris recovers
The meeting started under the best auspices for Tiago Splitter's men, who quickly took a comfortable lead (23-16) thanks to a solid defense and well-constructed attacks. But Limoges, led by an incisive Trevon Bluiett (18 points at 4/6 at 3-points) and captain Nicolas Lang (18 points), reversed the trend in the second quarter. The Limougauds inflicted a 10-0 in two minutes to lead 45-40 at the break.
Paris, affected by a virus which recently decimated its workforce, was able to find the necessary resources to get back into the match. An excellent passage from Nadir Hifi (13 points) and the slaloms of Maodo Lô allowed the locals to get back on track (68-68) at the end of the third quarter.
A controlled end to the match
The final quarter saw the Parisians raise their level of play. An initial 7-0 stunned Limoges, who made more mistakes in key moments. Ward, again, sealed the fate of the match with a spectacular dunk at the very end of the game, allowing Paris to end its series of defeats.
For Limoges, this defeat confirms its difficulties in winning outside its bases. Despite the efforts of Souley Boum (10 points at 4/11 on shots, 4 rebounds and 2 assists for 6 ratings in 25 minutes) and Alexandre Chassang (4 points at 2/4 on shots, 4 rebounds and 4 assists for 9 evaluation in 23 minutes), the CSP was unable to contain the Ward-Shorts duo in the money-time. This is the 17th away defeat in a row for Cercle Saint-Pierre, who have never won outside of Beaublanc since the appointment of Jean-Marc Dupraz as coach.
Next European challenge
Paris Basketball will have to quickly recover after this grueling back-to-back, with a trip to Spain on Friday to face Baskonia in the EuroLeague. Despite difficult conditions in recent weeks, the Parisians show that they remain as solid as ever.
