By Antigoni Zachari / info@eurohoops.net
With only four rounds remaining in the 7DAYS EuroCup Regular Season, there’s no other team holding a five-game winning streak besides Boulogne Metropolitans 92. Powered by veteran leadership and distinguished head coach Vincent Collet, the French team is stirring the waters in Group A and slowly but steadily is becoming a threat ahead of the playoffs.
The road so far
Metropolitans have been rather solid throughout the season, leading the race for most two-pointers made in the EuroCup with an average of 24.9 per game. With a 9-5 record, the only time they have lost by double-digits this season has been a Round 7 faceoff against Joventut Badalona on the road. That has left them in a tie in victories with Partizan NIS Belgrade, to whom the Metropolitans lost 89-82 in Round 6 and are about to visit on Wednesday for Round 15.
Pivotal performers
Metropolitans has four players scoring in double digits and plenty of unsung heroes who have done their part towards collecting wins all season long.
Will Cummings is leading the team with 17.6 points, 4.8 assists, and 3.6 rebounds and has yet to miss a game this season. A former EuroCup champion with Darussafaka, Cummings has the necessary experience and scoring assets to save the day whenever his team needs him the most, which also reflects on his performances. There’s only been one game in which he didn’t score in double figures, a narrow win over Slask Wroclaw early in the season. The floor general currently leads the race for performance index rating with an average of 20.9 per game.
Front to back, Metropolitans is loaded. Another key addition during the offseason has been that of big man Vince Hunter, who was a member of the All-EuroCup Second Team in 2021. Hunter was part of the Virtus Bologna squad that reached last year’s semifinals and is having a career-best season in the competition under Coach Collet. A pivotal performer for the team, the American center has posted four double-doubles this season while averaging 12.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.7 steals across 13 games.
Veteran experience and depth
Coach Collet can also count in his veterans, which is a luxury as regular season entering final last stretch, where experience plays a key role.
With Hunter sidelined in Round 12, big man Miralem Halilovic offered solutions in the paint, going for a total of 18 points, not far off of his season-high (19 points), while also averaging career-highs of 9.0 points and 6.1 rebounds per game this season.
Speaking of a loaded squad, Tomer Ginat was also a revelation in Round 14, as Metropolitans cruised past Hamburg Towers. Giant had a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds, and despite going 0-for-2 from the three-point line that night, he’s a center who can definitely shoot from the perimeter.
Ginat just adds to the verification of the Metropolitans’ quality status. Currently placed third in total team PIR this season, only 0.9 points behind leaders Joventut, the French side has incredible depth in all positions, which was reinforced even more with the midseason addition of Tony Crocker.
At 35, Crocker could be the missing piece that helped Metropolitans explode in the second leg of the regular season. He’s also a double-digit provider, with 10.1 points per game, and a lethal shooter from the three-point line with an average of 43.5%.
Teamwork makes dream work
The case of Keith Hornsby is also noteworthy. A newcomer in EuroCup, he completes the quartet of players averaging at least 10 points for Metropolitans, while also being a reliable force from the perimeter.
Interestingly enough, Collet has two more scorers going for 8.5 points per game. Guard Jordan McRae, who has just returned to action after being sidelined for roughly four months, and long-term Levallois resident David Michineau.
These stats add up to a total of 84.1 points per game for the French team, currently the competition’s fifth-best in scoring. All of which begs the question, how far can the Metropolitans go? Last year, they made the quarterfinals, so it’s natural that with assets like theirs this time around, the Metropolitans can aim even higher.