Recoletas Salud San Pablo Burgos competed evenly for one half against Le Mans but came away empty-handed in Europe once again. Porfi Fisac's team reached halftime tied against one of EuroCup's most defensive and athletic squads, but Le Mans controlled the second half to win 88-80. The Castilian side closes the first round with just one victory and six consecutive defeats.
A Depleted Burgos Squad
Burgos traveled to France without DJ Steward, their leading scorer in the EuroCup with 17 points per game, who suffered a left hamstring injury against Valencia. Also absent were Žiga Samar and Vlatko Čančar, while Pablo Almazán, Rubén Guerrero, and Dušan Radosavljević arrived dealing with injuries. Fisac completed the roster with two under-22 players from the affiliate team, Ramiro Rodríguez and Code Mbengue, while Retin Obasohan played his first road game with the team.
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Le Mans More Composed After the Break
Still, Burgos held their own in the first half and went into the locker room tied. After halftime, Le Mans showed better composure in crucial moments and opened up the lead that secured the victory—their fourth in the EuroCup and third in their last four games. The French side improves to 4-3 and sits among the top four in Group A, while Burgos remains in second-to-last place.
"We have the talent to compete, but we might lack the experience to win," Fisac had warned beforehand. The game proved him right.