The French team's second-half defense, coupled with the leadership of De Colo and Maledon, led to a big win
ASVEL found its 'blueprint' in dismantling of Efes
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Regular Season
Round 12 of 34
Group Regular Season
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LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne registered its biggest win of the season, and its largest win in more than two years, as it beat the visiting Anadolu Efes Istanbul 97-82 on Friday night.
It was a celebratory night at LDLC Arena to begin with, as team captain Charles Kahudi was honored in a pregame ceremony for making his 500th appearance for the team. For the first 20 minutes there was a growing feeling the team will not manage to finish the occasion as it wanted, with Efes dominating on offense.
The visitors scored 55 points in the first half, then held an 11-point lead in the opening minute of the third quarter, and 51-61 a minute later. From that point on, however, it felt as if was only one team on the floor. And that was ASVEL.
"It was just a reaction from us," Theo Maledon said in a EuroLeague TV interview after the game. "In the first I felt we were not executing, so it was just a reaction from everybody, realizing that we need to play with more intensity."
The hosts needed 6 minutes to erase the deficit, and after Joffrey Lauvergne finished a fast break with a dunk to give ASVEL a 68-66 lead with 1:31 to go in the third, the home team never relinquished the lead.
ASVEL had a two-headed playmaking monster in Maledon and Nando De Colo. This combination of youth and experience torched Efes throughout the game. Maledon had 17 points, 7 assists and 4 rebounds, and even though the 23-year-old shined like he has many times already this season, De Colo's performance might have been more eye-pleasing.
In just over 16 minutes on the floor, the 37-year-old De Colo had 17 points, making all 3 of his two-point shots and 3-of-6 three-pointers, while also dishing 4 assists. He masterminded the offense when he was on the floor, and had a great connection with another veteran, big man Lauvegne, who finished as ASVEL's top scorer with 18 points on 9-of-11 two-point shooting.
But what made the difference was ASVEL's second-half defense. After allowing 61 points in the first 22 minutes of this contest, ASVEL allowed just 10 points in the next 14 minutes. Making one defensive stop after another allowed ASVEL to run and open a 90-71 lead, a 29-10 spurt.
"That's got to be our blueprint, that's how we have to approach every game, and just keep riding that wave," Maledon said.
"I think we told truth to ourselves at halftime," De Colo explained. "We knew they scored too and we tried to fix things between us and try to be more aggressive."
"The season is long, and the players proved themselves that they can be a great defensive team, so hopefully we can build on this", ASVEL coach Pierric Poupet said, adding: "This is the EuroLeague, and if we want to compete every game, we have to always match this intensity level."
The next step for ASVEL will be taking this type of performance on the road. ASVEL is now 4-2 on its home floor but 0-6 on the road. However, before going on the road, ASVEL will have another home test against none other than Real Madrid on Tuesday night.