Kosice Heap More Misery On Arras

Alexandria Quigley led Good Angels Kosice in yet another solid win for the Group leaders

It never rains but only pours for struggling Arras who remain winless in EuroLeague Women Group B after being dismantled 78-52 at high flying Good Angels Kosice.

Having dispensed with the services of head coach Thibault Petit 24 hours earlier, the move was never likely to result in an immediate and dramatic uplift in performance.

As perhaps expected against an impressive Kosice unit, it was very much a familiar story for the French strugglers who suffered an eighth consecutive defeat.

The writing was on the wall as early as the opening quarter when the porous Arras defence leaked an eye-watering 32 points.

Having only managed 16 at the other end of the floor, they were already treading water and effectively out of contention with a fight-back never a realistic scenario.

An 8-2 start to the second period by Kosice didn't exactly help matters and with Allie Quigley continuing her excellent form and shooting touch for the hosts, they were able to coast their way through the remainder of the game.

Indeed during the final quarter, Good Angels took the opportunity to rotate their bench and hand some precious court-time to promising young teenage duo Barbora Balintova and Zsofia Hruscakova.

Quigley finished with 19 points for Kosice who still lead the Group, whilst Natasha Lacy celebrated and justified her recent contract extension with a typical all-action contribution of nine points, 10 rebounds and 4 steals.

Veteran centre Sandra Dijon and Johanne Gomis were the only players to deliver for Arras, combining for 29 points.

Arras are due to officially confirm the identity of their new play-caller during coming days.

Quotes Good Angels Kosice vs. Arras

Alexandria Quigley, Good Angels
"We knew that it's going to be a tough game because last time we played there it was hard. So we had to play quality in offense and in defense, too. I try to be aggressive in every game and I want to play well - that's all that matters. It is always important to start well after the break so we wanted to do like this also this time."

Cécile Piccin, coach of  Arras
"This game wasn't so important for us because we have to focus on the French championship - we don't want to go down to the Second Division. We are expecting a big game on Saturday; we feel pressure because we lost a game. In Košice it is always tough, but we are happy to be here it is a beautiful city."

Johanne Gomis, Arras
"Košice are a very good team, at home we played a perfect game, but to play away is always harder. They possess quality in each position, for us it was hard to play a game like this. They put a lot of effort in the first quarter and it was tough for us to keep the contact. Our defense didn't work well."

Maroš Kováčik, coach of Good Angels
"We entered the game well and we won the first quarter by 16 points. But, we have to admit that in the second half we lost our rhythm. We played hard games in the Slovak Cup during the weekend so it was demanding for the girls to play another game in such a short time. I know that we could play better. I tried to use the bench, but we are never satisfied. There could be seen some fatigue on our performance. I may say that there is not an easy opponent in EuroLeague  and because of that I am happy we could win this game."

Quotes Good Angels Kosice vs. Arras

Alexandria Quigley, Good Angels
"We knew that it's going to be a tough game because last time we played there it was hard. So we had to play quality in offense and in defense, too. I try to be aggressive in every game and I want to play well - that's all that matters. It is always important to start well after the break so we wanted to do like this also this time."

Cécile Piccin, coach of  Arras
"This game wasn't so important for us because we have to focus on the French championship - we don't want to go down to the Second Division. We are expecting a big game on Saturday; we feel pressure because we lost a game. In Košice it is always tough, but we are happy to be here it is a beautiful city."

Johanne Gomis, Arras
"Košice are a very good team, at home we played a perfect game, but to play away is always harder. They possess quality in each position, for us it was hard to play a game like this. They put a lot of effort in the first quarter and it was tough for us to keep the contact. Our defense didn't work well."

Maroš Kováčik, coach of Good Angels
"We entered the game well and we won the first quarter by 16 points. But, we have to admit that in the second half we lost our rhythm. We played hard games in the Slovak Cup during the weekend so it was demanding for the girls to play another game in such a short time. I know that we could play better. I tried to use the bench, but we are never satisfied. There could be seen some fatigue on our performance. I may say that there is not an easy opponent in EuroLeague  and because of that I am happy we could win this game."