If anyone questioned why Montero is nicknamed 'El Problema', he supplied answers on Tuesday night
Jean Montero solved Valencia's scoring problems against Hapoel
Article
3 Mins read
In an intense and extremely tactical showdown, Valencia Basket grabbed a 91-82 victory over Hapoel Shlomo Tel Aviv at La Fonteta, taking a 1-0 lead in their best-of-three semifinal playoff series and getting within one victory of returning to the EuroCup Finals for the eighth time.
It was not easy for Valencia, as Hapoel started the game with the right rhythm, not allowing the hosts to share the ball and forcing their best scorers into one-on-one situations. Hapoel quickly identified Yam Madar as its go-to guy, and soon got plenty of help from Marcus Foster to get a double-digit margin, 36-46, near halftime.
Valencia needed answers on offense and 21-year-old guard Jean Montero provided them from that moment until the end of the game.
Montero went to the line twice and made all 4 free throw attempts to help Valencia get within 42-48 at halftime. After the break, Montero scored around the basket off a great pass by Chris Jones, added a floater and sent the crowd to their feet with a wild four-point play. He then found Matt Costello for a jump hook that capped a 12-0 run. When Hapoel got within 62-59 late in the third quarter, Montero stepped up once again with an off-balance three-point play.
He was far from done: Montero buried a jumper and soon added a three-pointer to put Valencia on track to win the game, 74-63, with 8 minutes remaining. Montero finished the game with 24 points, scoring 20 of those in the final 22 minutes of the game.
"I don't really focus on points. I am just trying to do my thing the best I can do, to help the team to get the dub. I know I am really good at getting points but I am just trying to do my thing," Montero said. "They are a great team and we can never give up. We know it is not going to be an easy series. They have great players and we have to fight through it, just keep in the momentum."
Game Videos
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Valencia had 4 assists before the break but once Montero found his rhythm, everybody followed. Valencia had 14 assists in the second half and committed just 9 turnovers. It also outrebounded Hapoel by 42-31, including 16 offensive rebounds.
After the game, Valencia head coach Pedro Martinez praised Hapoel's defense and said that he expects another top-class basketball battle in Game 2 on Friday.
"We beat a great team that plays very tough, very smart, an incredibly well-coached team. We had a lot of problems and were out of rhythm for a lot of minutes," Coach Martinez said after the game. "It was a tough game, maybe the toughest game of the season for us. We have to prepare, because the next game is going to be very similar to this."