Euroleague : Monaco falls into Spanish trap

AS Monaco delivered this Friday night its worst score of the season. Beaten 89-84 in Valencia, the Roca Team loses its place as co-leader of the Euroleague.

In Valencia, Monaco showed its first signs of weakness this season. Without rhythm and short of solutions during the first 30 minutes (64-54), the Roca Team tried to reverse the situation at the very end of the game.

But in a scrambled moneytime, the former Villeurbannais Chris Jones, already dominant in the first half, folded the case. The number 7 agent of Valencia finishes with 27 points, his record in Euroleague – equal to his mark at ASVEL last season – and offers AS Monaco, as in the good old days.

Back at Valencia, the first Euroleague club he played for in 2019, Jordan Loyd was the most prominent Monegasque (25 points). Waiting for the too late awakening of the Euroleague’s best scorer Mike James, the American guard allowed his team to stay level at the end of the first quarter (20-20) as well as at halftime (41-40), both times thanks to individual feats.

Like ASVEL on Thursday night, Monaco had opportunities to come back and overtake its opponent as after Elie Okobo’s equalization at 73-73 (37th). But its constant indiscipline and its defensive oversights caused its loss.

The Spanish school got the better of a Roca Team relying on too many individual saves. Sasa Obradovic’s men conceded another defeat, their second in a row after letting Dijon break their unbeaten record in the league last Sunday. For its next appointment, the team of the Principality will receive Baskonia, to take revenge on another Spanish opponent.

Photo : Euroleague