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Ahmed propulse les River Lions en finale de la LECB après une victoire acharnée contre une Alliance tenace

Myles Dichter • August 11, 2024

Dans le vestiaire des River Lions de Niagara après la finale de la conférence de l’Est, on chantait et on dansait. 


Mais d’abord, il y a probablement eu quelques soupirs de soulagement. 


Les River Lions, tête de série, se sont échappés avec une victoire de 78-75 face à l’Alliance de Montréal vendredi à l’Auditorium de Verdun, encore une fois grâce à Khalil Ahmad, deux fois Joueur décisif de l’année, qui a enchaîné deux lancers de trois points consécutifs pour sceller la victoire. 


Les River Lions, qui ont dominé l’Est avec un bilan de 14-6 en saison régulière, affronteront la meilleure équipe de l’Ouest, les Bandits de Vancouver (14-6), lors de la finale de la LECB dimanche, de retour à l’Auditorium de Verdun. 


C’est un match que Niagara aborde avec confiance, sachant qu’Ahmad, qui a également marqué un record en séries pour la franchise avec 31 points, est de leur côté. 


« Il joue un basket incroyable en ce moment. On pouvait le voir dès le début du match, il était incroyablement concentré et quand le match est en jeu, il n’y a pas de secret. C’est un athlète exceptionnel, très bien préparé, qui prend son métier au sérieux et qui a une confiance totale en lui-même », a déclaré l’entraîneur-chef des River Lions, Victor Raso.


« Et il fait le travail. Il nous fait bien paraître. »


L’Alliance menait 69-67 lorsque le cadran s’est arrêté pour la période du pointage cible, et les équipes ont échangé des paniers alors qu’un match déjà intense montait d’un cran. 


Montréal (6-14), qui s’était automatiquement qualifié pour ce match en tant qu’hôte, a riposté à chaque attaque de Niagara et semblait contrôler le rythme pendant la majeure partie de la rencontre. 


Même après qu’Ahmad ait réussi son premier trois points dans la période du pointage cible pour placer son équipe à un panier de la victoire, le meneur de l’Alliance, Alain Louis, a répondu avec deux lancers francs. 


Mais Ahmed est revenu sur le terrain avec une réponse de son propre chef, inscrivant un lancer en suspension contesté pour envoyer Niagara en finale du championnat. 


« Ça me rappelle les matchs de 21 avec les amis, où le prochain point l’emporte, a déclaré Ahmad. Mais un grand merci à mes coéquipiers, car ils m’ont soutenu tout au long du match. Je tirais terriblement, je manquais des lancers francs, mais ils me donnaient confiance, faisaient des actions décisives. »


En plus de ses points, Ahmad a récolté 10 rebonds pour compléter un doublé. 


Cependant, il n’a réussi que neuf de ses 20 tentatives de lancers (4 sur 14 à trois points) et a manqué cinq de ses 14 lancers francs. 


Une partie du mérite revient à la foule de plus de 3 000 personnes à l’Auditorium de Verdun, qui rugissait à chaque panier de l’Alliance, surtout lorsque ces points leur donnaient l’avantage. 


En équipe, Niagara n’a réussi que 18 % de ses lancers e trois points et 55 % de ses lancers francs. 


« Nous avons gagné un match lors de notre pire journée de lancers et nous avons parlé de ça toute l’année : à quel point es-tu bon lors de ton pire match? Et aujourd’hui était notre pire match. Tout le mérite revient à Montréal, ces gars-là sont tous athlétiques », a déclaré Raso.


« Les joueurs des River Lions sont simplement un groupe acharné qui croit toujours avoir une chance. Et une grande partie de cela est due au fait qu’ils savent toujours que Khalil est dans notre équipe. »


Niagara, qui faisait partie des six équipes fondatrices de la ligue, a atteint les séries chaque année, mais n’a accédé à la finale qu’une seule fois, en 2021, où elle a perdu contre Edmonton. 


Maintenant, Victor Raso, l’entraîneur avec le plus de victoires en carrière, qui a pris les rênes des River Lions en 2020, aura une chance de remporte son titre. 


La saison de Montréal, quant à elle, se termine malgré un effort valeureux. 


L’Alliance a terminé avec un bilan de 6-14 en saison régulière, mais savait depuis le début qu’elle jouerait ce match et a souvent parlé de la difficulté de maintenir la concentration avec une place automatique pour le week-end du Championnat. 


En effet, les choses se sont déroulées ainsi, car l’équipe de l’Alliance en séries a joué un basket beaucoup plus affûté que son homologue de la saison régulière. 


En entrant dans la salle de presse après le match, l’entraîneur-chef Derrick Alston Sr. a passé quelques moment à consulter la feuille de statistiques. Sa conclusion?


« On a joué sacrément bien », a-t-il dit en riant.


Ahmed Hill a mené une attaque répartie de l’Alliance avec 14 points, tandis que Jordan Bowden a ajouté un doublé avec 10 points et 11 rebonds. 


Alston Sr. a déclaré que l’équipe, qui a traversé des périodes creuses et des défaites serrées tout au long de la campagne, a atteint son apogée au bon moment. 


« On leur adonné du fil à retordre. C’est dommage que ça ne se soit pas déroulé comme on l’aurait voulu, surtout à domicile, la foule était fantastique. C’est simplement triste », a-t-il déclaré. 


Le meneur des Pacers de l’Indiana, Bennedict Mathurin, originaire de Montréal, était présent pour assister au match. 


Jahvon Blair, deuxième meilleur marqueur de Niagara, a manqué le match car il devait retourner dans son équipe professionnelle en France. Il ne sera pas non plus disponible pour la finale. 


Le match a commencé lentement, les équipes combinant pour le quart le plus bas en termes de points dans l’histoire des séries éliminatoires, avec les River Lions devant 16-11 après 10 minutes. 


L’Alliance s’est battue dans le deuxième quart alors que l’offensive des River Lions continuait de piétiner. Mais Ahmad a finalement semblé libérer le panier dans la dernière minute de la première mi-temps, réussissant deux trois points pour envoyer son équipe aux vestiaires avec une avance de 38-36. Avec ses deux triplés, Ahmad a dépassé les 100 trois points réussis en carrière. 


Pourtant, Montréal a résisté à cette brève explosion et a continué à se battre tout au long du match. Un trois points au buzzer de Bowden a permis à l’Alliance de mener 59-54 à l’entame du quatrième quart. 


Montréal a mené de sept points au quatrième quart avec qu’une séquence de 5-0 des River Lions n’envoie le match à la période du pointage cible. 


Ou, comme on commence à l’appeler, la période Ahmad. 


- CEBL -


About the CEBL

A league created by Canadians for Canadians with a mission to develop Canadian players, coaches, sports executives, and referees, the CEBL boasts the highest percentage of Canadian players of any pro league in the country with 75% of its rosters being Canadian and a record 10 players with NBA experience in 2024. Players also bring experience from the NBA G League, top international pro leagues, the Canadian National team program, NCAA programs, as well as U SPORTS and CCAA. Fourteen players have signed NBA contracts following a CEBL season, and numerous CEBL players attend NBA G League training camps every year. The CEBL season runs from May through August with games broadcast live on CEBL+ powered by BetVictor, TSN, TSN+, RDS, Game+, Next Level Sports & Entertainment and Courtside1891. More information about the CEBL is available at CEBL.ca and @cebleague on InstagramTwitterTikTokLinkedInFacebook & YouTube.

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