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9 Julian Gamble (Telekom Baskets) (photo: Jörn Wolter)
06/04/2017
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The week's big numbers: Tough pill to swallow for Bonn; Fall lives up to the challenge

MUNICH (FIBA Europe Cup) – After first-leg defeats in the Semi-Finals for both Elan Chalon and Nanterre 92, an all-French encounter for the FIBA Europe Cup trophy didn't seem too likely, but that's exactly how things turned out.

Moustapha Fall blocked Telenet Oostende's paths to the rim and completely shut down Rasko Katic in Chalon-sur-Saone, while Nanterre were responsible for one of the most heart-breaking defeats in the history of Telekom Baskets.

Like at the end of every week, we take a closer look at what actually went down in the FIBA Europe Cup through a lens of numbers.

2

France started the FIBA Europe Cup season with four representatives and two of them have gone all the way to the Finals. All four of the sides made it through the Regular Season, but that was the only barrier that came without casualties.

BCM Gravelines-Dunkerque failed to make it through the Second Round, while Pau-Lacq-Orthez were bounced out of the competition in the Round of 16. However, there was no stopping Elan Chalon and Nanterre 92, who will now face off in an all-French contest in the Finals.

With four teams, France was only the second-best represented country in the competition. During the course of the season, five Belgian clubs competed in the FIBA Europe Cup: Antwerp Giants, Belfius Mons-Hainaut, Brussels Basketball, Limburg United and Telenet Oostende.

5

Lights out shooting by Kenneth Horton had Telekom Baskets cruising right until the final period in the game against Nanterre. The Bonn forward had made his first 5 three-pointers and scored 24 points in the first three quarters of play, but was kept silent in the last stanza.

With Bonn down by 4 points on the night and 3 points on aggregate, coach Predrag Krunic trusted the potentially score-tying three-pointer with 19 seconds left on the clock to Horton, but he couldn't get his sixth attempt to fall.

6

Elan Chalon playcaller Jean-Denys Choulet pointed to the team's center Moustapha Fall as the key to their success in the second leg against Telenet Oostende. After the first leg, he challenged his 25-year-old big man to step up his game and he delivered.

"The key of the game was Moustapha Fall, who did great on Rasko Katic and the overall energy demonstrated by the team defensively."Jean-Denys Choulet, head coach of Elan ChalonJean-Denys Choulet, head coach of Elan Chalon

Fall played the entire 40 minutes of the game and fell just short of a double-double with 12 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists to his name. However, his biggest contribution came on the defensive end, where he registered 6 blocks and added a steal.

The 6-block game was the second-best in the FIBA Europe Cup this season, only behind Kervin Bristol of Kataja Basket, who swatted away 7 shot attempts against Telekom Baskets in the Round of 16.

16

From one end, it was an incredible turnaround. From the other, a colossal collapse that few Bonn fans will be able to forget soon.

Up by 11 points heading into the final frame of the tie, Telekom Baskets all but had a ticket to the Finals sealed, but were ultimately left heartbroken by Nanterre after an unbelievable comeback.

The Frenchmen outscored the hosts by 16 points in the final quarter (26-10), with the Telekom Dome growing more and more quiet with their advantage melting at an incredible rate.

Chris Warren's go-ahead three-point basket with 2:44 on the clock completely knocked the air out of the crowd and Germany international Heiko Schaffartzik brought the hammer down by piling on three more points from downtown to make it 85-79, a gap Telekom Baskets never managed to cover.

18

Elan Chalon made sure they didn't make a mess of their second consecutive Semi-Finals appearance. Having lost to Openjobmetis Varese in the Final Four they hosted last year in Chalon-sur-Saone, Jean-Denys Choulet's team powered through to an 83-65 win against Telenet Oostende after a terrific defensive display.

The Belgian team arrived to France with a 5-point edge from the first leg, but it disappeared already in the first quarter. Elan Chalon achieved the major breakthrough in the third quarter and finished the job by continuing to increase the gap until the final buzzer, when it reached a game-high 18-point margin.

55

While John Roberson was the brightest-shining star in the Quarter-Finals series against Cibona, it was Cameron Clark who deserves most of the plaudits for Elan Chalon's victory against Telenet Oostende.

After scoring 28 points in the first leg in Belgium, the forward added 27 more points at home at Le Colisee, finishing with 55 out of 163 of the team's total points in the two-game tie.

70

The four-man wrecking crew of Chris Warren, Talib Zanna, Mykal Riley and Mathias Lessort combined for 70 points in Nanterre's amazing comeback win in Bonn, with the rest of the team scoring just 16 points.

11,000

The return games of the Semi-Finals drew large crowds both in Bonn and Chalon-Sur-Saone, with the sold-out Telekom Dome packed to the tin with 6,000 spectators and Le Colisee also filling its full capacity of 5,000 seats.

FIBA