the march was too high, Bourges eliminated by Mersin at the gates of the Euroleague

The Bourges basketball players lost heavily on Wednesday during the Euroleague quarter-final support match on the floor of the Turks of Mersin (91-63) and were eliminated at the gates of the Final Four. Dominated in all areas of the game, the Berruyères were no match for a very solid Turkish team and will not find the last four of the queen of European competitions, who have been fleeing them since the 2013-2014 season.

Tango gave themselves the right to dream by winning at home (76-75) in the return match during a successful meeting in which they were able to contain Mersin, who finished in first place in his group at the end of the group stage. While they had the objective of “creating doubt” among the Turks, the big favorites of the confrontation, the start of the match lived up to the expectations of Berruyer coach Olivier Lafargue. His players made a perfect ename: aggressive, skillful, their attacks quickly wreaked havoc on the Turkish defence. After five minutes of play, their engagement, combined with opposing errors (1/7 shooting), allowed them to lead 12-3.

The Gray show

But the Turkish armada and its players passed by the WNBA then put their game in place, without giving any chance to the Tangos, helpless as in the first leg, largely lost (84-56). The Tokyo Olympic champion and double champion of the North American league Chelsea Gray got her hands on the meeting, to knock out Bourges. The leader martyred the French, chaining baskets and Decisions actions, so that at halftime, she had already deleted 19 points, five rebounds and six Decisions assists.

Mersin logically broke away, then flew away, in the wake of his star against whom Olivier Lafargue’s players never found the solution, received 13 points at the break. The Berruyères, victorious in the Eurocup 2022, were not more dangerous after the rest, their heads under water in front of the demonstration of the Turkish. The usual Bourges fireworks, Alix Duchet and Yvonne Anderson, did not manage to exist, far from the good performance they had delivered at the Prado. They did not register that eight points each, with four balls lost by the Serb.

For his part, Gray continued his business of demolishing the Berruyer building, finishing the game with 27 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, for a final evaluation of 35. The Tango, winner of the Euroleague in 1997, 1998 and 2001, thus misses the boat in the absence of Russian formations, excluded from European competitions because of the invasion of Ukraine, which regularly monopolize the places in the last four. Mersin joins Fenerbahçe, another Turkish club, already qualified after game 2.