Mickaël Hay barely gave his interlocutor time to finish his sentence. Asked whether a certain euphoria had settled into the team after the last two victories, in Blois (102-105) then against Strasbourg (94-86), both after extra time, the coach, in a significant grin was very clear: “In euphoria? That's not knowing me well. And if the players ever fell into euphoria, it would go very badly because it would mean that we are not learning. »
So, on the eve of continuing with Orléans, the team in great shape for a month (five victories in a row), the coach prefers to keep both feet sealed in the floor. “I know it will be a big match because the opponent is good. For us, there is no choice, if we want to win, we have to be good, generally in line with what we have been doing for a week. Let it be even better, because I think we can still progress. But it’s true that it’s a great match that’s coming up,” imagines the coach before crossing swords with a declared candidate for the rise who has proven his ability to play well away from Loiret with his four victories out of six in shift.
A history of series
To be good, Elan must be fresh. And with two overtimes played in five days before this reception in Orléans which closes a busy sequence of twelve matches since October 1, we can imagine a certain counterproductive weariness settling in in the Béarnais organizations. Doubts immediately cleared by the coach. “Despite all the ups and downs it has experienced since the start,” he said, “I find the team still fresh, both mentally and physically, not marked by the last two overtimes. »
Basketball / Elan Béarnais: Chris Ledlum still on top
The pleasant surprise of the first days of the championship is no longer one. The status of Christopher Ledlum, who has been confirmed throughout the matches, is now that of tenor as best scorer and best player in the evaluation.
With the “freshness” aspect removed, we must hope that the Palois have learned from this chaotic start to the season to string together two victories in a row in the championship, which has not happened to them since Antibes and Nantes straddling September and October.
“For it to be a trigger, it has to be established over time, it’s much too early to talk about it. It’s consistency that I’m looking for,” insists Mickaël Hay. I know that we are capable of very good things just as we are also capable of much less good things. We must reiterate and still progress, the coach draws as a guideline. “In any case,” he concludes, “if we have an average match, we will fall by the wayside. The quality of the adversary forces us to be ourselves. And that's so much the better. »
The editorial team advises you
As was previously the case against Antibes, Roanne, Blois in the championship or Limoges and Strasbourg in the Coupe de France, the five supposedly strongest teams which have presented themselves so far in front of Elan and which the green and white have all beaten . May this series continue.
