There is a particular danger in arriving undefeated. Every opponent sees an opportunity to become the first. At Geispolsheim on Saturday 7 November, Monaco Basket Association encountered a team quite willing to seize it. By halftime, the league leaders held an advantage small enough to disappear with a single basket. Twenty minutes later, Monaco were still unbeaten.
A 94–86 away victory carried MBA to seven wins from seven league games, preserving their place alone at the summit of Ligue Féminine 2. But the evening also offered something more revealing than another tick in the victory column: a glimpse of how Monaco respond when the opposition refuses to fall away.
The quarter that changed the evening
Geispolsheim had little interest in playing a supporting role. The hosts scored 26 points in the opening quarter and matched Monaco’s 19 in the second. At the interval, MBA led just 47–45. For all their early-season authority, the visitors had earned very little breathing space. Then came the decisive stretch. Monaco won the third quarter 29–20, turning that slender margin into a 76–65 lead. Geispolsheim would take the final period, but could not recover the ground lost after halftime. Maud Stervinou supplied the evening’s sharpest shooting: 24 points, including six successful three-pointers from nine attempts. Ilona Hattab added 19 points, while Stepha M’Baye contributed 15. Beneath the baskets, Sarah-Yvanna Keboum assembled an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double. Different tasks, different contributors, the same outcome.
A warning tucked inside a victory
A week earlier, the shape of Monaco’s success had been rather different. Against Aulnoye on 31 October, MBA constructed a commanding 60–36 advantage through three quarters. The foundations looked reassuringly solid: control of the rebounds, shared scoring and enough attacking options to keep the visitors occupied. Yet Aulnoye scored 30 points in the final quarter, reducing a potential rout to an 80–66 result.
The win was secure, but the closing period supplied useful material for coach Emmanuel Body. A large lead can protect a result while concealing things that still need attention. Monaco’s 47–33 rebounding advantage and 22 assists told the stronger part of their story. M’Baye led with 15 points, Carolina Rodrigues scored 14 and Keboum added 13. Lizy Capre-Bories also made her mark with five points, including a three-pointer.
The defeat that belongs in the picture
Monaco’s perfect record needs one precise qualification: it applies to the league. Their Coupe de France campaign ended against Lyon ASVEL Féminin on 28 October, with a 71–81 defeat. Even there, however, MBA made an elite opponent uncomfortable. After trailing 35–46 at halftime, Monaco fought back to lead 60–59 early in the final quarter. ASVEL eventually recovered control and secured qualification, but only after the hosts had seriously threatened an upset. Rodrigues finished with 18 points. Placed together, these three matches make an intriguing portrait: a cup defeat containing genuine resistance, a home victory containing a late warning, and an away success requiring a decisive change of pace. Seven league wins have made Monaco the team everyone wants to stop. The next challenge is learning to live with that reputation.
