By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
You would expect a more balanced clash between two of the most competitive contenders of this year’s EuroLeague. Still, the last game of 2023 turned into a complete domination by AS Monaco against FC Barcelona. In the Salle Gaston Medecin, the home side took the 91-71 victory.
The competition’s leading scorer Mike James had another night of his caliber, performing 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists despite colliding with Tomas Satoransky at 4:47 minutes in the third quarter and having to leave the court remporarly.
“We wanted to bring aggressiveness and protect home court because we lost too many games at home already. I had a quick stitch and we’re good”, he commented.
Alpha Diallo followed with another all-around game of 19 points (4/6 from beyond the arc), 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. With two classy three-pointers off the dribble in the second, Kemba Walker added 6 points in AS Monaco’s bag, while Jaron Blossomgame had 11 points in his team’s victory.
“I’m satisfied with the whole game, we were focused. We played great basketball”, Sasa Obradovic shared after the victory.
7th defeat in the last 10 games
On the losing end, Jabari Parker was undoubtedly the best player on Roger Grimau’s team, ending with 15 points and 5 rebounds, while Nikola Kalinic added 10 points and 5 rebounds. This is Barcelona’s 7th loss in its last 10 games between EuroLeague and ACB.
As coach Roger Grimau said: “It was a very bad game for us, they scored on us in many one-on-one situations, they scored some crazy threes… There was a moment in the third quarter when we had three or four free triples that we missed and maybe after that, we backed down. And that’s it.”
Both contending for spots to get directly to the Playoffs, AS Monaco (10-7) and Barcelona (11-6) are called to tough encounters in next week’s double-game action. Sasa Obradovic‘s team will go on the road to face first Maccabi Tel Aviv and then in last year’s EuroLeague semifinal rematch against Olympiacos.
Coach Grimau’s side, instead, will host back-to-back Spanish derbies with Real Madrid and Baskonia to try to get back on the winning end, erasing the latest difficult moment. They are now only one victory ahead of the 10-7 group composed of Panathinaikos, Fenerbahce, Monaco, and Maccabi.
PHOTO CREDIT: Turkish Airlines EuroLeague