FIBA Basketball
FRA - Monclar praises battling Orleans
DIJON, (Coupe de France) - Dijon coach Jacques Monclar paid tribute to Pro B side Orleans after defeating them 66-58 to the lift the Coupe de France on Sunday. The victory gave Dijon their third piece of silverware in club history, having also won the League cup in 1993 and the Aces Week in 2004
DIJON, (Coupe de France) - Dijon coach Jacques Monclar paid tribute to Pro B side Orleans after defeating them 66-58 to the lift the Coupe de France on Sunday.
The victory gave Dijon their third piece of silverware in club history, having also won the League cup in 1993 and the Aces Week in 2004.
However, Monclar recognised that the unfancied Orleans, who lie third in Pro B, gave them a hard time, having raced into a 10-2 lead early in the game.
"Orleans are a good team," Monclar said.
"They play good basketball and they certainly are closer to the Pro A than the Pro B in terms of level.
"We have to pay tribute to them, it would not have been nonsense if they'd won.
"As far as we are concerned we failed to kill the match many times. We could have controlled the match by half-time but we were unable to command their offensive rebounds."
It was ultimately left to TJ Lux to guide Dijon to victory, although they never truly shrugged off Orleans throughout the match.
Orleans coach Philippe Herve could barely disguise his pride at the way his side performed in the final.
"We had opportunities but the only thing we lacked was accuracy in getting the ball on target.
"This would have allowed us not to run after the scoring all the time.
"I am very proud of my players because we did what we wanted to do, especially in defence.
"But my regret is that we failed to develop a faster game because we were very fit."
Dijon will now focus on the league, needing one more win to book their ticket to the play-offs.
"We will see what happens next but we know we are going to have to work hard," Monclar said.
PA Sport
The victory gave Dijon their third piece of silverware in club history, having also won the League cup in 1993 and the Aces Week in 2004.
However, Monclar recognised that the unfancied Orleans, who lie third in Pro B, gave them a hard time, having raced into a 10-2 lead early in the game.
"Orleans are a good team," Monclar said.
"They play good basketball and they certainly are closer to the Pro A than the Pro B in terms of level.
"We have to pay tribute to them, it would not have been nonsense if they'd won.
"As far as we are concerned we failed to kill the match many times. We could have controlled the match by half-time but we were unable to command their offensive rebounds."
It was ultimately left to TJ Lux to guide Dijon to victory, although they never truly shrugged off Orleans throughout the match.
Orleans coach Philippe Herve could barely disguise his pride at the way his side performed in the final.
"We had opportunities but the only thing we lacked was accuracy in getting the ball on target.
"This would have allowed us not to run after the scoring all the time.
"I am very proud of my players because we did what we wanted to do, especially in defence.
"But my regret is that we failed to develop a faster game because we were very fit."
Dijon will now focus on the league, needing one more win to book their ticket to the play-offs.
"We will see what happens next but we know we are going to have to work hard," Monclar said.
PA Sport