ASVEL takes a monumental slap
Still decimated, ASVEL, victorious in the Eurocup last April, did not exist on Thursday evening on its floor at the Astroballe against Valérie Garnier’s Fenerbahçe, reigning European champion. The Villeurbannaises, who still have not won a match this season, were slapped in front of their audience (109-52).
That last April 12 which saw the Villeurbannaises win their first European title by correcting Galatasaray twice to have the right to lift the Eurocup seems a long way away. Today, ASVEL must fight with a decimated workforce and for the moment, this is unforgiving. Already soundly beaten at the opening of the season by Basket Landes in the LFB Supercup then also dominated by Roche Vendée last weekend during the first day of the championship, the players are still trained for the moment by David Gautier (but for how many time?) recorded a new disappointment this Thursday evening on their floor at the Astroballe in the European Super Cup.
Opposed to Fenerbahçe of Valérie Garnier, winner of the last Euroleague, ASVEL was pulverized (109-52) in front of its audience. In defense of the Rhodaniennes, as has been the case since the start of the season, they once again presented themselves with a rotation comprising only… four professional players, in the persons of Helena Ciak, Marine Fauthoux , Laura Quevedo and Alexia Chery.
ASVEL led by 46 points after thirty minutes of play!
Certainly, just before the start of this terribly unbalanced meeting on paper given the current strength of ASVEL, the club dear to Tony Parker and Jean-Michel Aulas had announced the reinforcement as a medical freelancer of the American-Cameroonian rear. 34 year old Jori Davis. The latter, experienced, would certainly have done a lot of good against the Turks. But Davis was not there, at least not on the field, any more than Sandrine Gruda, whose return had been announced for a time.
And in these conditions, this opposition which only had the name could not lead to anything other than a walk in the park for the European champions. Gautier did not wait for his team to be trailing by 23 points at the break, or by 46 after thirty minutes of play, to understand that he could offer playing time to his younger players to finish this match. There were only young people left on their floor at the buzzer. And a hell of a slap on the scoreboard for this sad Villeurbanne team which is still chasing its first success.
