The balloon flew away. Time is frozen. As suspended. There were only a handful of seconds left when the Greek Kostas Sloukas took his last shot. Lack. Release at Gaston-Médecin: at the cost of a new very high level fight, AS Monaco took the best of Olympiakos, this Friday evening on its floor. Winners of a tiny point (78-77) in this match 4 of the Euroleague quarter-final, Sasa Obradovic’s men were heroic. The patients, too. He had to.

If Monaco has never been far to the score, the Greek formation has long managed the business. Without huge margin, but enough to hold the controls of a tight match (38-42 at the break).

And then the Roca Team took the lead. 18 minutes from time, on a sublime movement by Will Thomas from the baseline. A strong moment, a real one, improved during the following minutes.

The attitude of NBA star Kevin Durant was not deceiving. Nor did his energetic reactions at the edge of the floor: come as a spectator, the Nets player got up more than once to applaud the ASM of his friend Mike James, even going so far as to bite on the ground at times

The Olympiakos Reds managed to regain the lead, but Monaco did not let go. Never.

While the Principality’s players only had a head start in the last minute, Donta Hall came on to counter the giant Moustapha Fall. Done, no one comes in.

Surely not this last arrow from Sloukas, therefore, yet author of a huge match (19 points) but not hot enough to send his team in front and send it to the semi-finals of the competition.

Thanks to this second success during the series, the ASM recalls two innings everywhere. On Wednesday, we will have to return to Piraeus to scrap. And afford a new feat, synonymous with open doors for the final four. It’s already big. It would be huge.