After a first match against Canada with 7 points at 3/11 shooting, including 1/9 from afar, Marine Johannes set the target against Nigeria, with 15 points at 5/9 from afar. Enough to allow the Blues to make the gap.
Came to attend a Team USA match, in order to see ” for the first time “ With her idol Stephen Curry performing live, the “super sub” of the French women's team could savour qualification for the quarter-finals.
“I just try not to think too much. That's my game too, to play on instinct, to feel the moment.” she describes after the meeting on her shot selection, often outside the systems. “I didn't necessarily have the address in the first match but I didn't get stuck on that. So that's a positive point.”
Especially since it has the full green light from Jean-Aimé Toupane.
“She can shoot as many times as she wants, that's her strong point”
“I give him carte blanche” explains the coach. “She can shoot as many times as she wants, that’s her strong point. We would be stupid not to encourage her to do it and all her teammates understand that this strong point is something that we have to insist on. She gives it back to us, even if she also defends. I congratulated her the other day because if people thought she couldn’t defend, she shows that she does it very well too. So I am very satisfied with what she does on both ends of the floor.”
In second place behind the locomotive Gabby Williams (14 points, 7 assists, 6 interceptions, 5 rebounds), Marine Johannès also brings her little touch of madness to the pass, notably in the direction of Dominique Malonga.
“It's always surprising passes” the young interior is amused. “I'm always ready to receive the ball because with her, it can come from a little bit nowhere. Now, we've developed this thing a little bit so I'm ready because I know that I can have a pass from anywhere, at any time. But it's always incredible because every time you receive the pass, you're alone. All you have to do is convert the try.”
Even if she is sometimes greedy (4 lost balls), Marine Johannès often destabilizes the opposing defense.
“She really has this sense of passing, this sense of space too” concludes Dominique Malonga (4 points, 4 rebounds). “Because it's also about making the pass at the right time, at the right moment, in the right place and it's true that there are few players who manage to do that. It's great to be able to play with a player like that. I've known her since Asvel, I'd already been able to see it even if I played a little less. In any case, we, the interiors, depend on the passes from the exteriors, it fuels us so having a player like that is great.”
Interview conducted in Villeneuve d'Ascq
