On Saturday night the 14th Global Games of the Regular Seasonal NBA were held that will be played in Europe and the fifths held at the Paris Arena Accor.
Normally, to get here, the Parisians took line 14 of the Metro to Bercy, where they would arrive at the place. However, this weekend the line will be closed by maintenance.
And like the riots underground, there were also riots at the surface level when the Indiana Pacers derailed the San Antonio Spurs train, led by the prodigal son of France, Victor Wembanyama, with a blunt victory for 136-98.
While the attention focused on the 21-year-old orchestra director in the preparation and during the game, there was no case of Dej-VU for the Pacers, who suffered a painful defeat by 140-110 against the same rival in the same game. Building less than 48 hours in advance.
If on Thursday it was a wild celebration of the NBA in Paris, on Saturday it was silent when the two-time Indian Partisanist with an impressive variety of shots that not even the range of 7 feet 4 inches from Wembanyama could stop.
With all the understandable talk about the return of the local hero to Paris this week, the Pacers changed the narrative with an emphatic victory of recovery to remember all that, in fact, they arrived at the finals of the conference this last season.
Tyrese Haliburton scored 28 points, the maximum of the game, when the Indiana Pacers beat the San Antonio Spurs 136-98 on Saturday in the second game of his NBA Global Game in Paris this week.
He performed a great performance in the third quarter to put his team in control in the French capital.
Indiana's exhibition meant that the French hero of the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama, ended disappointingly
Like Thursday, the Arena Accor was flooded with emotion for what could be expected from Wembanyama, especially after its 30 points, including four triples, 11 rebounds, six assists and five blockages against Indiana.
Another 15,609 spectators, with exhausted tickets, were attentive to each moment of the 21 -year -old, who finally ended with 20 points and 12 rebounds. This was a 'at home' match for the Spurs and thus felt when a mass roar resonated from the sand as soon as the center went to the court for warming.
However, it was the Pacers who had a spectacular start showing their intention from the beginning, led by six fast points of Andrew Nembhard, whom the three points and three rebounds of Bennedict Mathurin joined.
It was clear that the Spurs were trying to warm their poster boy immediately, but failed their first two attempts at the field goal. However, it was the third defendant, since she scored a triple to light fans who hoped to see him shine once again.
Indiana chief coach Rick Carlisle had lamented before Mail Sport that the defense of his team was “alarming” in the third quarter of Thursday's great defeat and that adjustments would be made. They were properly in the first quarter and finished it with an advantage of nine points and with the score 33-24 in their favor.
Although on Thursday night it was a match at the Casa de los Pacers, their fans noticed much more within the strident Accor Arena 48 hours later. Each good play by Indiana silenced the dominant support of the Spurs, which was interrupted by the cries and screams of the small pockets of those who carried gold in the stands.
This was exemplified with a game for a dead time in the first quarter between two members of the crowd. Playing a three -way version with basketball theme, the winner revealed a pang shirt under his shirt to receive mass boos. Summarized the feeling of the evening: Indiana was willing to be the villains of the pantomime.
They continued that narrative in the second quarter, which began with a fierce overturning of their pivot Myles Turner.
Wembanyama had all the eyes on him and the Arena Accor expected him to shine again.
Andrew Nembhard marked the pattern from the beginning for Indiana, although with six fast points in the first quarter.
Then came a small injection of Wembanyama. First, he excited the crowd with a dump on Aaron Nesmith before producing another slam that forced a dead time for Indiana.
Moments later, the role of antagonist became Ben Sheppard when he committed a foul to the local favorite, who fell grabbing the lower left ribs, causing mass boos to Sheppard and concern about the number one of the Spurs. He soon stood up, to relieve fans while raining songs of 'MVP' in the 17th minute. He properly responded to his war cry throwing his free kick.
Although he made some striking mates, Wembanyama could not control his team when Indiana took control of the process and reached the interval with an advantage of 65-50 points.
If Wembanyama produced Gaelic style in the third on Thursday, on Saturday was a spicy case, since the meeting became complicated, which was summarized in the words exchanged between the two teams after a Mathurin technical foul for a push to Stephon Castle.
The bad mood only seemed to galvanize the men of the interim chief coach Mitchell Johnson. Wembanyama's frustrations (relieved twice before the referees during this room) were compensated by the spurs streak that saw them overcome the 15-point deficit to lead 77-76 with four minutes and 53 seconds remaining in the room.
This was a mini case of Deja-Vu for Carlisle since his team could not stop San Antonio, which forced him to use an instant dead time. However, it worked when they stopped their slip and recovered impulse.
“We had bad energy,” Carlisle admitted after the game. 'We were not playing with enough strength, enthusiasm or hardness. However, we were able to recover the impulse with Tyrese's career, which was a really important part of the game. “
Wembanyama falls to the sore soil after a lack of Ben Sheppard before overcoming it
In fact it was. It had been a rainy day in Paris and Haliburton received the note when he scored 16 points in a row in San Antonio in a three -minute shooting test that even those who encouraged him had to recognize and admire. That room ended 18 points, getting seven of its eight field shots and hitting four of four from behind the arch.
Pascal Siakam, which ended with 23 points, added a Late Triple after Haliburton's race to help the Pacers take 98-86 advantage at the end of the third quarter.
That difference in points only became broad as the Pacers honored their name and San Antonio could not follow their rhythm. With just over four minutes after that room, the score had shot up to 116-94 with Siakam dominating, having already achieved 21 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.
This was quickly becoming a great victory for Indiana and the chief coach of the Spurs, Mitchell Johnson, resigned from the white flag when three minutes and 30 seconds were missing to replace Wembanyama for the last time. His last contribution to the party was to cause a loss of ball for his team after his pass to corner was not controlled by a partner.
The disappointment summed up the great feeling that reigned in the Arena Accor, with some fans who left for the absence of minutes to the end. However, not before they gave his hero, which ended with 20 points and 12 rebounds, an enthusiastic reception while walking to the bench.
While both teams emptied their benches, their respective second units revived the emotion of the second half. After Sheppard and Mathurin, Jarace Walker became the next Indiana antagonist after hitting another French Spurs player, Sidy Cisoko, at the top of the head due to a flagrant foul. The boos of the crowd arrived instantly.
Haliburton came to life in the third quarter with 16 points in a row and 18 in total in that period.
Wembanyama applauds the fans at the end of the game in an emotional week for the star of the Spurs
The cheers became 'oooos' moments later when Sandro Mamukelashvili of San Antonio was expelled by two flagrant fouls about Thomas Bryant after pushing him when he tried a dump. This caused some members of the Bank of the Pacers to rise upset about what they had just witnessed.
However, there was no discomfort among them because of their exhibition, since they limited the Spurs only 12 points in the last quarter and denied them to score triple figures in general, since they stayed with the 136-98 victory for the delight of Indiana fans. who could now be truly heard.
“I did not necessarily feel the support in either of the two games, I simply think it was our family behind the bench,” the 24 -year base joked to Mail Sport after the game.
“I think an interesting part is when you play in a neutral audience, but obviously it was not so, they really appreciate the basketball game and encourage when good things happen. We simply try to launch a good product and today we have shown it much better.”
Haliburton has developed an affinity by Paris after winning an Olympic gold medal with the US team. HERE last summer and now be part of this week's action has only helped achieve it.
Haliburton strokes his ear before the crowd of the Arena Accor while his exciting third quarter suffocated them.
“It has been a lot of fun here,” he reflected. “He is helping to grow the game, the league's opportunity has been incredible.”
'We only wanted to leave the city with a good note. I thought it was a very good performance on our part tonight and I just want to maintain this impulse in the future. ”
If the week went from Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, who hope to return to normal, such as Line 14 of the Parisian Metro, on Saturday night he firmly belonged to the Indiana Pacers, who made their own statement.
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