By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Bayern Munich was feisty but in the end, Monaco got what they wanted by getting the 84-81 road win.
Coach Sasa Obradovic‘s team secured the home-court advantage with a 21-11 record thanks to this result and after Baskonia‘s win over Fenerbahce.
Mike James had his best game after being sanctioned by his team with a total of 28 points. Jordan Loyd added 14 points and four assists.
“We are just trying to get back on track, playoffs are coming soon and I wanted to get back into some kind of rhythm, it worked out today”, said James after the final buzzer.
The guests had a five-point lead (45-40) at halftime behind 18 points by James. However, Bayern held the guests to just 12 points in the third, entering the last quarter with a three-point advantage (60-57).
However, the fourth period started with a 13-2 run by Monaco, which led again by eight (70-62). Bayern reacted and trimmed the lead to two (70-68).
That was the cue for a big three by James, which started a 5-0 run (75-68) and Monaco kept its distance until the end.
To be exact, Vladimir Lucic made it a three-point game (84-81) with two very difficult threes and 28 seconds to go. James missed the next shot and with 4.3 seconds Bayern got one last chance. Corey Walden took the last shot to force overtime but also missed.
Walden with 18 points and Lucic with 20 were the top scorers of Munich which had already been eliminated with an 11-21 record.
“There are no favorites in the playoffs”
“It was a final game for me like it is for me in any competition because I have a lot of stress”, admitted a relieved coach Obradovic after the end of the game.
As he explained: “Luckily, with grit and team spirit we won this game, and depending on the other results we will see what we achieved with this win If you have home-court advantage it’s a little bit easier, but no matter who we play the chances are always high for both opponents”
Speaking about the game, Jordan Loyd added: “We couldn’t make the shots we usually make today, but we rebounded the ball well in the second half and we did a solid shot”.
As for Bayern coach Andrea Trinchieri, he was straight to the point without wanting to say much: “We played against a great opponent and we played a great second half”.