In their quest to reach the sweet 16 of the Eurocup and first place in their group, the Roca Team earned an important win against MoraBanc Andorra last night.
AS Monaco Roca Team – Morabanc Andorra: 81 – 73
The Roca Team put on a superb display in front of their home crowd at the Stade Louis-II, winning over MoraBanc Andorra in the fifth day of Eurocup action. This third consecutive victory for Monaco in European competition keeps the Monegasque side close behind group leader Red Star Belgrade. It was Monaco’s fourth victory in five Eurocup matches.
In winning against Andorra (81-73), Monaco has secured a favorable position within their Eurocup group with three matches left to play. Despite a less than convincing fourth quarter, the Roca Team prevailed. Monaco was lead by a solid performance from Gerald Robinson with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, 5 assists and 3 rebounds (freshly returned from a back injury) and 19 points from Yakuba Outtara who was 4-of-6 from behind the arc with 4 assists. Outtara also imposed himself as a physical presence in the paint, snatching up 9 rebounds.
Impressions from the game
MoraBanc Andorra’s French point guard Andrew Albicy managed 6 points and 3 assists over the course of the match, but was unable to establish a real rhythm. Andorra was nevertheless able to equalize the score, as the teams went into half-time tied 44-44.
In the late stages, Monaco gave up a five-point lead to fall behind the Andorran squad 5 minutes before the end of the match. The lead, however, was short-lived as the Monegasque team resorted to persuasive, collective play and regained control.
Monaco in the Sweet 16?
The Monegasque coach Sasa Filipovski resumed after the match: “I have a lot of respect for Andorra. They’re an aggressive team who are difficult to stop. We had some defensive issues in the first half because of it. When we were able to clean up of defense, we were helped by our rebounding and hitting some key shots. Gerald’s (Robinson) return to the floor was important for our rotation, and we look forward to having Paul (Lacombe) back with us soon. Congratulations to my guys. The sweet 16? We’ll get there step by step.”
This victory follows Eurocup wins against Galatasaray, Brescia, and Ulm, with a single loss to Red Star Belgrade. This is their first home victory in European competition. The Roca Team will host Brescia at home next Thursday en route to a potential sweet 16 berth.