French Pro A: Orleans loses top spot

If you want to watch some tense high stakes Basketball this season, the French Pro A would be a good place to start. The league is extremely tight this year and the competition has proved fierce throughout the campaign, and Round 18 was no different. The results after this week’s round of action means there is a five way tie for first place at the top of the ProA, while there are two other locked positions in the table.

Cholet Basket vs. Entente Orleans 45, 78-69

Cholet shocked lead leaders Orleans at La Meilleraie. The home team had not won in the last 10 ProA rounds and has been slipping down the league, so defeating high flying Orleans was a huge surprise. The win keeps Cholet in 13th with an improved 7-11 record, while Orleans takes a big hit, dropping from 1st to 5th with a 12-6 record. The game was tied at halftime but the hosts pulled away in the second half to claim a vital win over one of the league´s best teams. The Cholet win was propelled by a game high points haul of 18 from guard John Cox (195 cm, USF´05) and 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists from Torey Thomas (180 cm, Holy Cross´07). Brian Greene (204 cm, Colorado State´03) kept Orleans in touch with 15 points and was backed up by Kyle McAlarney (185 cm, Notre Dame´09) with 14 points.

Paris-Levallois vs. Strasbourg, 58-75

Strasbourg was the biggest winner thanks to Orleans´ loss as the club capitalized to down Paris-Levallois and take first place in the ProA. This top of the league clash was decided by a strong second half from the visitors that seen them record a 48-26 gap from a losing position in the first half. Ricardo Greer (197 cm, Pittsburgh´01) led the winning effort with 17 points and 6 rebounds as Strasbourg went to the summit of the league. Paris-Levallois remains in the hunt with a 11-7 record despite dropping to sixth place.

ASVEL vs. Nancy, 75-77

This mid-table clash saw ASVEL fall at home to Nancy as the hosts gave the visitors the perfect platform by sending them to the line too often. Indeed, Nancy hit 25 from 30 attempts (83.3%) at the free throw line to clinch a tight game by just two points, while 25 boards in defence helped at the other end. Paul Harris (193 cm, Syracuse´09) stood out for the winners with a double-double performance of 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Edwin Jackson (191 cm) grabbed 17 points in the losing effort. Both teams stay where they were in the ProA, with Nancy stuck in 7th place with an 11-7 record and ASVEL in 10th at 9-9.

Results from Saturday February 1st

Antibes vs. Nanterre, 77-80
Chalon vs. Roanne, 95-75
Limgoes vs. Le Harve, 83-77
Le Mans vs. Dijon, 74-56
Gravelines Dunkerque vs. Pau-Lacq-Orthez, 64-73