Boulogne Metropolitans 92 vs. Slask Wroclaw - Game

2021-22Regular SeasonRound 2

October 27, 2021 CET: 20:30

Local time: 20:30 MARCEL CERDAN

Metropolitans survives thriller with Slask

Boulougne Metropolitans 92 edged Slask Wroclaw 86-83 on Wednesday in a thriller decided in the final seconds. Metropolitans improved to 1-1 in the standings while Slask dropped to 0-2. Will Cummings paced the winners with 17 points, David Michineau added 14, Jordan McRae 12 and Miralem Halilovic 10 for Metropolitans. Kerem Kanter led Slask with 18 points, Kodi Justice scored 15 and Jakub Karolak 13. Cummings had 14 first-quarter points and got help from McRae to give Metropolitans a 28-24 edge after 10 minutes. Justice and Kanter stepped up for the visitors, bringing Slask within 49-47 at the break. Kanter and Justice got help from Aleksander Dziewa to put Slask ahead 67-69, at the end of the third quarter. Nobel Boungou-Colo dunked to make it a double-digit game, 83-73, but Slask managed to rally to 85-83. Hunter split free throws and Justice missed from downtown at the buzzer.

Nobel Boungou-Colo to playmaker David Michineau for a two-handed dunk!@Metropolitans92 #7DAYSMagicMoment pic.twitter.com/GWAGmP3iXN
— 7DAYS EuroCup (@EuroCup) October 27, 2021

Cummings got Metropolitans going with a three-point play, igniting an 11-0 opening run in which Lahaou Konate and McRae each struck from downtown. Cyril Langevine stepped up for Slask with a put-back layup and Lukasz Kolenda banked in an off-balance shot. Karolak bettered Cummings's layup with a triple and Langevine scored twice around the basket to bring the visitors within 15-12. McRae buried a three-pointer and Cummings erased Karolak's jumper with a layup. Cummings kept pacing Metropolitans, but Justice and Travis Trice fuelled a 0-7 run that got Slask within 24-22. Halilovic followed a jump hook with a layup for a 28-24 Metropolitans edge after 10 minutes.

Justice and Michineau traded jumpers early in the second quarter and Nobel Boungou-Colo struck from downtown to make it 33-26. Slask found a new go-to guy in Kanter, who scored 5 points in a 0-7 run that tied it. After Keith Hornsby and Karolak traded triples, Halilovic stepped up with a couple of put-back baskets that gave his team a 40-36 lead. Kolenda and Justice kept pushing Slask. Steeve Ho-You-Fat and an outstanding Michineau prompted the guests to call timeout at 46-40. Langevine scored in the paint and got help from Kolenda and Karolak to bring Slask within 49-47 at halftime.

Ivan Ramljak tied the game with a reverse layup soon after the break. Vince Hunter ignited the crowd with a huge slam and Konate added a jumper to give Metropolitans fresh air at 53-49. Karolak answered from downtown, but Tomer Ginat quickly boosted his team's lead to 59-52. Kanter hit a triple and followed Dziewa's four-point play with a layup that tied it again, 61-61. McRae sank a three-pointer, but Justice dunked and added a running hook to complete Slask's comeback, 64-66. Kanter and Hornsby traded bombs from downtown, fixing the score at 67-69 after 30 minutes.

Michineau made a six-meter jumper early in the fourth quarter and Hunter added a layup that gave the hosts a 71-69 lead. Michineau scored a one-handed jumper in the lane, but Trice matched that with a jumper in transition. Hunter dunked off a steal and got help from Hornsby and Michineau to boost the hosts' margin to 79-71. Halilovic matched Ramljak's layup with a floater and Boungou-Colo dunked to make it a double-digit game, 83-73. Kolenda scored in penetration and found Kanter for a triple that gave Slask hope at 85-78 with 2:18 left. Kanter dunked and Justice hit a triple that got the visitors as close as 85-83. Hunter split free throws with 3.8 seconds left and Justice missed from downtown at the buzzer.

Beautiful basketball by @Metropolitans92 #7DAYSMagicMoment pic.twitter.com/jYitB0jlTz
— 7DAYS EuroCup (@EuroCup) October 27, 2021

Point guards lead Metropolitans to win

Just like last season, playmakers are essential to Boulogne Metropolitans 92's success. David Michineau and Will Cummings proved it against Slask Wroclaw, making sure that Metropolitans played at a very high rhythm for all 40 minutes. Cummings scored 14 of his 17 points in the first quarter and also contributed 4 assists and 4 fouls drawn for a PIR of 16. Michineau came off the bench and did a little bit of everything, too, getting 14 points on 6-of-8 two-point shooting and 2-of-2 on free throws. He added 4 rebounds, 2 assists and a PIR of 14.

Metropolitans: many steals, few fouls

Boulogne Metropolitans 92 committed only 14 fouls in Round 2 against Slask Wroclaw. It was the second-lowest mark in the EuroCup this season after Metropolitans only made 11 fouls against Turk Telekom Ankara in Round 1. That doesn't mean that Metropolitans lacked aggressiveness, as other stats prove. The hosts finished the game with 8 steals from five different players and pulled down 9 offensive rebounds against the Polish powerhouse. Metropolitans also excelled inside the arc, making 26 of 42 two-point shots (61.9%), its best mark in almost a year. Metropolitans made a club record 67.7% on two-pointers against Unicaja Malaga on November 3, 2020.

Slask's Kanter bounces back in style

Slask Wroclaw big man Kerem Kanter had a rough season opener against Lietkabelis Panevezys. Kanter was held scoreless in that game, missing 2 shots, getting 2 turnovers and committing 3 turnovers for a PIR of -5. Kanter, however, did much better in Round 2 against Boulogne Metropolitans 92. Despite his team's 86-83 road loss, Kanter bounced back and led his team with 18 points, hitting 3-of-5 two-point shots and 4-of-7 from downtown. He was also more active all around, grabbing 6 rebounds and getting an assist, a steal and a foul drawn for a PIR of 21. It was a very good sign for Slask going forward.

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Eurocupbasketball.com

Referees: PEREZ, MIGUEL ANGEL; UDYANSKYY, EDUARD; CELIK, HUSEYIN

Attendance: 1973

By Quarter	1	2	3	4
Boulogne Metropolitans 92	28	21	18	19
Slask Wroclaw	24	23	22	14

End of Quarter	1	2	3	4
Boulogne Metropolitans 92	28	49	67	86
Slask Wroclaw	24	47	69	83

Boulogne Metropolitans 92

							Rebounds						Blocks		Fouls
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG	3FG	FT	O	D	T	As	St	To	Fv	Ag	Cm	Rv	PIR
0	MOULARE, ASSEMIAN	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
1	CUMMINGS, WILL	21:06	17	4/6	2/4	3/3				4		3			2	4	16
4	HORNSBY, KEITH	21:19	8	0/1	2/3	2/2				1	2	1				1	9
5	KONATE, LAHAOU	13:11	2	1/2	0/2			1	1	1	1						2
6	MICHINEAU, DAVID	24:24	14	6/8	0/1	2/2	1	3	4	2		1		1	2	1	14
7	HALILOVIC, MIRALEM	21:25	10	5/7		0/2	3	3	6	2	1	1	1		2	2	15
15	HO-YOU-FAT , STEEVE	8:33	2	1/1	0/1			1	1	1		2			2		-1
16	BOUNGOU-COLO, NOBEL	20:12	5	1/1	1/3			3	3	1	2	1			1	3	10
32	HUNTER, VINCE	26:17	7	3/9	0/2	1/2	1	5	6	1	2	3	2		3	2	5
41	GINAT, TOMER	23:45	9	4/5	0/1	1/1	4	5	9	3		2			1	1	17
52	MCRAE, JORDAN	19:48	12	1/2	3/7	1/2		3	3	2			1		1	4	15
	Team							1	1								1
	Totals	200:00	86	26/42	8/24	10/14	9	25	34	18	8	14	4	1	14	18	103
				61.9%	33.3%	71.4%

Head coach: COLLET, VINCENT

Min: Minutes played; Pts: Points; 2FG M-A: 2-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); 3FG M-A: 3-point Field Goals (Made-Attempted); FT M-A: Free Throws (Made-Attempted); Rebounds: O (Offensive), D (Defensive), T (Total); As: Assists; St: Steals; To: Turnovers; Bl: Blocks (Fv: In Favor / Ag: Against); Fouls: Cm (Commited), Rv (Received); PIR: Performance Index Rating

Slask Wroclaw

							Rebounds						Blocks		Fouls
#	Player	Min	Pts	2FG	3FG	FT	O	D	T	As	St	To	Fv	Ag	Cm	Rv	PIR
0	TRICE, TRAVIS	21:22	6	1/4	1/3	1/2		3	3	6		2			1	2	8
2	KOLENDA, LUKASZ	18:38	8	3/6	0/2	2/2		1	1	5	1	2			3	2	7
3	KAROLAK, JAKUB	25:13	13	2/4	3/6		1		1	1	1	2			2		7
5	KANTER, KEREM	28:28	18	3/5	4/7			6	6	1	1				1	1	21
6	JUSTICE, KODI	21:22	15	6/6	1/6		2	3	5	2	1				2	1	17
7	GORDON, KACPER	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
10	WOJCIK, JAN	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
11	DZIEWA, ALEKSANDER	18:31	7	1/2	1/1	2/3		1	1			2	1	1	1	3	6
12	LANGEVINE, CYRIL	21:25	9	4/9		1/2	3	7	10		2	3		3	3	1	7
15	GABINSKI, MICHAL	11:32			0/1					1		1			2		-3
18	TOMCZAK, SZYMON	DNP	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
27	RAMLJAK, IVAN	33:29	7	3/4		1/3	2	2	4	2	3				3	4	14
	Team							2	2			1					1
	Totals	200:00	83	23/40	10/26	7/12	8	25	33	18	9	13	1	4	18	14	85
				57.5%	38.5%	58.3%

Head coach: URLEP, ANDREJ

Head Coaches

COLLET, VINCENT

Boulogne Metropolitans 92

"First of all, I am happy that we won this game because it was very difficult. After a very good start, we slowed down a little bit too early. They were much better and got rhythm. Our defense in transition was weak in the first half. They took the advantage to run the floor, to score quickly against our defense. In the second half, we played better D, especially in the fourth quarter. We had the opportunity to get an easier win but we missed 1-2 layups in a row and gave them 1-2 three-point shots. Difficult ones, but important ones. Finally, for us, it is a very good thing to avoid because we could lose. We were not far from the defeat. I welcome this win the good way because the season is long, and it would have been difficult to start with a defeat at home, so it is very good for us to win this game. We have many games in a row and know we cannot always be good. We are up and down and tonight, we were in between: we had some moments in which we were quite good, and some moments in which it was difficult. We wait for the next game. We are happy it finished like this."

URLEP, ANDREJ

Slask Wroclaw

"Definitely, the key of the game was our turnovers in the fourth quarter. For three quarters we were great, we had 6 turnovers, and in the fourth quarter, we had 7. They were a little more aggressive and we didn't respond to that well, but I think our guys left everything on the court. I am proud of that. We just have to keep working, keep playing like that, to get some wins. We analyzed them and knew what their strengths were. I cannot say we defended everything the way we were supposed to but it is a good team, they have good players. You cannot just stop everything."

Players

CUMMINGS, WILL

Boulogne Metropolitans 92

"We just had to pay more attention on defense. We struggled a little bit with rhythm on offense, so we really had to make it up on the defensive end. Those guys out there really kept us in the game through a stretch in the third and the fourth quarters. Also, we did a good job at the end of the game, so we have to keep moving forward. I expect to go [to Krasnodar], compete and try to get a win, that's it."

GINAT, TOMER

Boulogne Metropolitans 92

"I think it was a very important win for us. After last week in Ankara, we were very disappointed about our loss, so coming here, on our own court, to get our first win was very important for us. I think we started the game very well but we didn't play good defense, as we should. That's why they stayed in the game until the last second. But we are happy with the win. A win is a win, especially in the EuroCup, in which every win is going to help you along the way. And we are happy about it."

KAROLAK, JAKUB

Slask Wroclaw

"It seems to me that at the beginning we were a bit scared of our rivals, but the whole game showed that there was nothing to be afraid of. We played with Metropolitans on equal footing, but the opponents sped up a bit in the final minutes. We didn't answer and the advantage quickly grew to 10 points. We went back to the game and had a chance for overtime, but we didn't manage to get it. Nevertheless, this match showed that we are going in the right direction and our form is getting better."

KANTER, KEREM

Slask Wroclaw

"First of all, I am proud of my guys. We fought all the way to the end. If you look at our roster, we don't have a lot of experience playing in Europe but that wasn't an excuse. Our guys fought until the end. I think we played really well in the third quarter and then in the fourth quarter, we made a few mistakes and they had a little run. We answered at the end, but overall, it could have gone either way. Maybe, we made 1-2 mistakes at the end that cost us the game. But I like where we are going, both in the domestic league and in the EuroCup. We are getting better and are looking good, moving forward."