After three seasons in Elite 2/Pro B, Pau is on the verge of promotion to the top tier. Their journey, however, has been fraught with challenges, as demonstrated in their recent match in Orléans against OLB, supported by a boisterous crowd of 8,000. With just 3 minutes and 30 seconds remaining, Pau trailed by nine points. It was point guard Fabio Milanese, who scored 11 points in three minutes, who ignited their comeback, followed by François Wibaut, the team’s top scorer with 18 points, who sank a decisive three-pointer.
“The important thing is to advance,” commented coach Mickaël Hay to La République des Pyrénées. “Whether it takes two or three games, whether by one point or twenty, it doesn’t matter. But it’s true that advancing in two games gives us valuable rest. The battle was incredibly intense tonight. The next game is not until next Friday. This gives us a week to juggle treatment, rest, and getting everyone back in shape before we think about what’s next. I don’t know who we’ll play yet, or if we’ll win the final. But what I can tell you is that this victory, the group and I, will remember it for a very, very long time. To manage to stay on our feet when we seemed on the verge of breaking is a testament to immense character. A big round of applause for the boys.”
Understandably, OLB coach Lamine Kebe expressed his disappointment, as his team was also aiming for promotion:
“It’s very tough. I don’t want to make long speeches because it’s really difficult to take. We had an excellent second half for 17 minutes, perhaps playing at one of our best levels since the start of the year. But we completely lost our footing in the last three minutes.”
In another match, Poitiers secured a comeback victory against Nantes (79-88) in overtime, thanks to a three-pointer by Imanol Prot with one second left on the clock. This forces a decisive game on Poitiers’ home court, meaning Pau will have to wait a little longer to know their final opponent.
