70 free throws to 28 for Monaco: SIG revolted by arbitration

Listening to Paul Lacombe, no one could have guessed the projection that was to follow. “Arbitration? In all honesty, from the start, Monaco was more aggressive than us, we were surprised and we made mistakes.admitted the SIG international. “They are there. I was on the bench and from what I saw, there was nothing to complain about. At least it woke up the public, it certainly had its effect. If we put this three points (from Matt Mitchell four seconds from the buzzer), we don’t even talk about it. For me, it’s anecdotal. » Nothing very unusual, basically, for Strasbourg, which is the team which has committed the most faults this season in the championship (23.1 on average per game).

Strasbourg come out with their heads held high but let Monaco slip away in the semi-finals

However, in a single evening, AS Monaco shot more free throws (33) than Strasbourg over the whole series (28). The differential over the two games is still quite amazing: 70 to 28 over the two games. Still, the SIG did start the game less aggressively, was placed earlier in the penalty (in just 150 seconds), which effectively allowed the Roca Team to go to the penalty line a little more often (11 fouls everywhere at halftime, but already double the number of shots attempted for ASM). In the end, the balance of fouls broke after the break (29 for Strasbourg, 19 for Monaco) and the SIG could not overcome it, even if they would most certainly have deserved to snatch a third game (83 -85). It is indeed rare to see a sweep (2-0 for Monaco) but a series so dominated in the evaluation by the loser: 99-89 on the way to the SIG, 97-88 on the return. SO, “more free since it will cease [ses] functions of president in a few months”Martial Bellon invited himself to a press conference to deliver the substance of his thoughts, quickly joined by his coach Luca Banchi.

“Funny, unreal, and possibly disgusting”

Martial Bellon: “When you are a basketball specialist, you look at the statistics sheets. However, it turns out that we have a higher evaluation of more than ten points each time (nine on the return, note). If the evaluation is higher when there is a narrow defeat, there is a problem somewhere. This problem is found very quickly in the statistics: in two games, 70 free throws for Monaco, 30 for Strasbourg (28, editor’s note). When you know a little about basketball, it’s not possible for there to be a team that completely beats the other at this point and the other that barely hits. 40 free throws away in two games, it’s just colossal. We have the feeling that there are two protected clubs in Betclic ÉLITE: ASVEL and Monaco. As we have the ability to make the comparison between the Betclic ÉLITE and the BCL, we looked: we are by far the worst treated team at free throws in Betclic ÉLITE, which is absolutely not the case in BCL. We saw a real difference in refereeing between the two competitions. Even if some are selected for international competitions (Mehdi Diffalah, who officiated on Friday, refereed the EuroLeague final on Sunday, editor’s note), even if some are intrinsically good, I invite French referees to look into this problem a bit. I do it in a calm, kind but also firm way. Like everyone at the end of the match, you saw the Monaco coach in the field from one meter. That’s worth a technical foul in any competition. A meter ! I’m not saying we lost because of the referees but 70 free throws to 30, somewhere, there’s a problem. I would like to point this out and invite those responsible for French arbitration to watch this case closely. We have already reacted to the national refereeing department after the match in Villeurbanne. I speak, too, on behalf of the players who dare not say so. It’s not good. When the referees ask for raises, I invite them to take a look at their production. »

Luca Banchi: “Given how the referees approached the match, their mission was quite clear. Even when the whistles were so bad, the players remained calm, stable, solid and I’m very proud of that. If they believe who can take me down and make me shut my mouth, I’m 57 and I’ve been in basketball for so long… I’ve coached in five different countries, I see what’s right or wrong, I can recognize what is correct or not, they won’t shut me up, I’m sorry. The behavior of the referees tonight looked like some sort of punishment but I feel good. We were facing a EuroLeague team, super intense, super athletic, super physical, and they shot 42 free throws more than us (he laughs yellow, editor’s note). It’s funny, unreal, maybe disgusting. »