Two very impressive performances this weekend with the victories of the Eagles on Anglet’s ice rink and the Nice handball team in Nantes. NVB continues its good regular season. However, the Antibes Sharks did not achieve the feat in Le Mans, and Margot Bailet struggled in downhill and Super-G.
Hockey: prestigious victory for the Eagles in Anglet
The 0-4 from the first match was still fresh in memory. On Saturday, in the Basque Country, Stan Sutor’s men set the record straight, and in what a manner. The Niçois won 5-2 after a thoroughly controlled game highlighted by the double of Matej Misura. The Eagles were already leading 2-0 at the end of the first period (Varga and Spelda) and 3-0 by the end of the second (Misura). Yoanne Lacheny’s fourth goal at the beginning of the third period sealed the match despite two goals from the Basques against one more from the Eagles. With three games remaining, the Eagles remain third but are two points behind leaders Cholet and one point behind second place Anglet. The next match is on Saturday with the reception of Mont-Blanc (11th).
Eagles Statistics: Misura 2 goals / Varga 1 goal and 1 assist / Lacheny and Spelda 1 goal / Brejka, Macon and Hamrak 2 assists / Slovak, Visnak and Hampl 1 assist.
Handball: an important victory for OGC Nice Handball
With three games to go until the end of the championship, this trip to Nantes was a crucial match. The girls of Sébastien Gardillou are now looking upward, towards the playoffs thanks to a 20-17 victory after an impressive second half. In the standings, Nice is 5th (27 points) tied with Nîmes (4th) and Besançon (6th) and will face a challenging schedule to finish the regular phase: hosting Metz (leader) on Friday then traveling to Besançon on February 27.
OGCN Handball Statistics: Knutsdottir 8 goals / Lacrabère and Daquin 4 goals.
Read a more complete summary by Jordan Perronneau: https://www.nicepremium.fr/sports,2/sports-collectifs,29/handball-l-ogc-nice-reste-en-course-pour-les-playoffs,18392.html
Ski: a tough weekend for Margot Bailet
Unfortunately, weekends are starting to look alike for Margot Bailet, the skier from Inter Club Nice. On Saturday, the Niçoise finished 32nd in the downhill in Garmisch Partenkirchen (Germany), more than 4 seconds behind the extraordinary Lindsey Vonn. No improvement this Sunday in the Super-G with a 42nd place finish, the last among the French, 3.76 seconds behind the winner Lara Gut. The next event is set for Saturday at Crans Montana (Switzerland) for a downhill and a super-combined, which she favors.
Volleyball: a great operation for NVB
Mladen Kasic’s men easily dominated Cambrai on Friday evening (3-0 in 1h17). NVB, strong in blocking (11 in total), never allowed the northerners to breathe in a one-sided match. The Niçois performed the best move of this 13th day. Rennes, the leader, stumbled against Saint-Quentin (2-3), and Tourcoing, third, lost to Plessis-Robinson (1-3). In the standings, Nice remains 2nd with 25 points, four points behind Rennes and three ahead of Tourcoing. The next match is on Saturday 13th in Martigues, fourth.
NVB Statistics: Clere 16 points / Seppanen 10 pts / Radevic 9 pts / Cubrilo 8 pts.
Basketball: second consecutive loss for the Antibes Sharks
Le Mans Sarthe Basket became the new leader of Pro A after their 74-67 victory over the Antibes Sharks, who did not underperform, even leading at halftime (36-34). Tim Blue, who scored 27 points on 11/18 shooting, was too isolated on the Azur side with a rating of 28 compared to 64 for the entire team. Le Mans made the difference after the break (18-15 in the 3rd quarter) and accelerated in the last ten minutes with an average lead around 10 points (22-16 in the 4th quarter). With 9 wins and 10 losses, Antibes remains 10th in the standings and will face Cholet, 13th, on Friday at the Azur Arena.
Antibes Statistics: Blue 27 points (11/18) and 7 rebounds / A. Mitchell 11 pts and 6 rebs / King 10 pts and 3 assists / Solomon 6 pts and 5 rebs.
