Marne-la-Vallée (France) (AFP)

Dijon offered its first Leaders Cup by dropping the ogre Villeurbanne 77 to 69, Sunday in the final, confirming its progress in recent years and its establishment among the best French teams, led by the excellent David Holston, in Burgundy since 2015.

It's been 14 years since the JDA Dijon has been waiting for a trophy, an interminable wait since the Coupe de France won in 2006. And the coronation at Disney Sunday comes from a certain logic, as the Burgundians have gradually settled among the best teams on the map national.

"We have confidence in ourselves. We have respect for our opponents like Monaco or Asvel. But we think that we also have a good team this year, and that when we talk about the best teams in France, we think we should also be mentioned in the conversation, "said tournament MVP Rasheed Sulaimon.

"Dijon deserves its victory. They wanted more than us. At the end of the match, we saw that there was emotion, they showed that they really wanted this trophy, by putting maximum energy to beat us, "commented Asvel coach Zvezdan Mitrovic, who was full of praise for the work done in Dijon, current co-leader of the French Championship with Monaco, by his colleague Laurent Legname.

"It is the fruit of several seasons. We know that the titles are so hard to take, especially now with the hegemony of Monaco and Asvel. To have beaten these two teams back to back is really incredible and well deserved for my players, "said Legname.

"I enjoy my first title as a coach, but it enhances the players, the staff, the club. We highlight the whole city of Dijon," added the club's coach, who is celebrating its 140th anniversary. this year, praising his "guys humanly really well before being basketball players".

- Holston decisive -

Sunday in a Disney Events Arena shaken by the gusts of wind from storm Denis, the match was long mastered by the Dijonnais, making a better start, but without ever widening the gap, which allowed Villeurbanne to hang on and return to the score (49-48 at the end of the third quarter).

In the very tight money-time, it was the American David Holston who took out two three-point shots then a brilliant assist to Alexandre Chassang, to give the JDA four points ahead (72-68), 54 seconds from the end of the match.

"This is my very first trophy. It's a great feeling. We were very consistent, playing very well," said Holston, MVP of the French Championship during the 2018/19 regular season, happy to be able to put these two three-point baskets "to help my team".

Arrived in 2015 in Dijon, he had a little interlude in Turkey in 2017 in Samsun, before quickly returning to the JDA.

"It's like Burgundy wine, it has improved year after year. Two or three years ago, it would never have continued to draw, it would have died out. There, it proved that it was a big one, "said the Dijon coach.

The perfectly mastered sequence of three games in three days with a limited workforce (nine players when Villeurbanne turned 12 in the final) is enough to give confidence for the rest of the season, while the JDA is still in the Cup France and that the play-offs will start in mid-May.

© 2020 AFP