23 years ago, SLUC Nancy gave France the last Korac Cup in history

23 years ago, it was a day of celebration in Lorraine. On April 17, 2002, despite a loss in Rostov (95-74), SLUC Nancy became European champions by winning the last edition of the Korac Cup. Thanks to their large victory at home (98-72), the Cougars could celebrate. 23 years later, with Sylvain Lautié still at the helm of the team, Basket Retro looks back on this memorable trophy.

🇫🇷 After Pau Orthez in 1984 and CSP Limoges (1982, 1983 and 2000), @SLUCbasketNancy became the third French club to win the Korac Cup.

🔏 Looking back at the Cougars’ triumph of April 17, 2002. 👇https://t.co/2DJBx8BfuY

— BASKET RETRO (@Basket_Retro) April 17, 2025

A « defeat » that felt like victory

That evening, SLUC Nancy lost on Lokomotiv Rostov’s court, but with a 21-point deficit, the defeat remained bearable. The 26-point cushion earned at Gentilly a week earlier allowed Nancy to be crowned (172-167 aggregate). Stevin Smith, who scored 23 points and 10 assists in the first leg, had been one of the key architects of this decisive lead.

In Rostov, the atmosphere was far from serene. After a tight first half, the Russians pulled away in the third quarter. The gap even widened to +22 at the start of the fourth quarter. They just had to avoid reaching -27. Mission accomplished, to the Lorraine team’s relief.

A united team and memorable heroes

In this challenging return match, Vincent Masingue shined with 24 points and 14 rebounds. But history will also remember the symbolic appearance of Cyril Julian, injured in the knee during the first leg, but present for 40 seconds on the court to be able to lift the trophy with his teammates.

This happened exactly 20 years ago…

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS 🔴⚪️
20 years ago @SLUCbasketNancy won the Korac Cup 😍#GoSLUC pic.twitter.com/8IPMgiQG2C

— SLUC Nancy Basket (@SLUCbasketNancy) April 17, 2022

Coach Sylvain Lautié, who had taken the reins a few weeks earlier after Hervé Dubuisson’s accident, could only savor the moment in the final seconds: « I only felt relieved with four seconds left. We had to make the difference at home. We did it well. This success also belongs to our fans, who pushed us in the first leg, » he declared in Le Parisien.

As for president Jean-Jacques Eisenbach, very emotional that evening, he saw it as « the reward for all the work accomplished during a complete season. »

A historic victory for French basketball

After Pau-Orthez (1984) and Limoges (1982, 1983 and 2000), SLUC Nancy became the third French club to win the Korac Cup, the last edition of a competition that would later merge with the Saporta Cup to become the EuroCup.

This European victory would open a successful period for the club, which would collect other trophies afterward: Semaine des As 2005, French championships in 2008 and 2011, Champions’ Matches in the same years.