By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
The latest commanding performance by T.J. Shorts II propelled Paris to a 94-82 victory versus AS Monaco and a 1-0 lead in the Betclic Elite Finals.
The team based in the French capital was in control through a double-digit advantage for most of the opener of a best-of-five series on Sunday.
A former member of La Roca Team, Mathias Lessort, was in attendance, sitting courtside at Adidas Arena. The 29-year-old center of Panathinaikos Aktor and regular with the senior national team of France received a standing ovation during a timeout, midway through the third quarter.
A projected future teammate at the Greens, Shorts dropped a game-high 30 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter. The back-to-back season MVP in France added six assists and six rebounds. Nadir Hifi and Tyson Ward chipped in 18 and 16 points, respectively. Leon Kratzer, Maodo Lo, and Collin Malcolm were unavailable for head coach Tiago Splitter.
On the wrong end, Mouhammadou Jaiteh paired 17 points with a game-high nine rebounds, and captain Alpha Diallo had 16 points. Aside from suspended Mike James, the back-to-back LNB champions ruled out Donatas Motiejunas and Daniel Theis for Game 1. Also, Vitto Brown stayed on the bench.
Play In Tournament
Elan Chalon – JDA Dijon 106-85
SLUC Nancy – Saint-Quentin 81-88
JDA Dijon – Saint-Quentin 92-79
Betclic Elite Playoffs
Quarterfinals (best of three)
Paris – JDA Dijon 2-1 (100-87, 79-80, 114-88)
Cholet – JL Bourg 0-2 (71-95, 89-94)
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne – Elan Chalon 2-1 (100-96, 69-76, 99-75)
AS Monaco – Le Mans 2-1 (76-69, 87-88, 85-76)
Semifinals (best of five)
Paris – JL Bourg 3-0 (100-89, 117-103, 103-93)
LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne – AS Monaco 1-3 (94-74, 77-94, 64-74, 86-91)
Finals (best of five)
Paris – AS Monaco 1-0 (94-82)