Far from being brilliant since the start of the season in Dijon, particularly in the tough at the start of November (1 point average at 15% over an interval of four matches), Ilias Kamardine (1.93 m, 21 years old) visibly benefited from the international truce.
36 rating for Kamardine
Against Gravelines-Dunkerque, in the Coupe de France (113-70), the Marseillais signed his best match of his professional career. Irresistible against the weak maritime opposition, he compiled 28 points at 10/12 (including 7/8 at 3-points), 2 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 interceptions and 2 lost balls for 36 ratings in 29 minutes. Record in career evaluation, by far (ahead of a peak of 32 during a Vichy – Angers last year), but not in scoring, with the bar of 29 points already reached twice with the JAV, during this famous match against EAB and especially in the playoffs against Boulazac.
“It feels good to win, and to see smiles on people’s faces”he declared at a press conference, in comments reported by Le Bien Public. “We are still going through a difficult period. We had injuries, and we gave everything. Gravelines is a very good team with talent, and it's liberating to win. There were strong words during the break, that we had to give maximum intensity, we used that. And we saw the ingredients that will have to be delivered to Nanterre on Saturday. We play every match to win, but of course keeping the trophy at stake, we thought about it a little. This victory is important for the head. »
22 minutes for Rieber, first for Balanca
The MVP of EuroBasket U20 2023 is not the only young person to have benefited from the Dijon stroll. With 22 minutes, Bastien Rieber (3 points at 1/5 and 3 interceptions) largely beat his professional playing time record, while Marius Balanca (2 points in 10 minutes) simply celebrated its premiere in the big world. But it was above all Mervyn Muamba (2.00 m, 19 years old) who stood out.
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Arriving from ASVEL last summer, the Espoirs interior had only been entitled to one appearance with the pros until then. A fairly forgettable sequence (2 minutes of play against Glasgow in the FIBA Europe Cup) since it is this 1/16th final of the Coupe de France which will remain as his birth certificate on the professional scene. In 16 minutes of play, the 2022 French U18 champion secured 13 points at 6/7, 2 rebounds and 2 interceptions for 15 ratings. Promising!
