MORE GREAT BASKETBALL EVENTS

Well last time I wrote about two great basketball games that I attended the previous week.  Well this time I am writing about 4 great games, all in one weekend.

Game 1 was last weeks BBL encounter between the Sheffield Sharks and Plymouth Raiders. 

This was another fantastic display by the Sharks who seem to be coming together just at the right time.  The Raiders arrived with DeAntoine Beasley and Gaylon Moore back in the team following long-term injuries but big man Terrance Durham was missing.

The awesome Marshall Brown was back for the Sharks following his trip back to the US.

You know, I really love games like ths where the home team takes control and never relinquishes it.  Every Sharks player did their bit to ensure this victory but honourable mentions must go to Marshall Brown who went 8 for 16 for his 22 points, James Whyte delivered and MVP performance and was simply awesome, going 9 for 14 including two dunks and he dished up 7 assists to go with his 5 boards and 3 steals.

Perry Lawson went 4 for 7 from the three-point line on his way to 15 points and 6 rebounds while Matt Gorman went 8 for 12 in his 17 and 7 performance.  It is a joy to be at the EISS at the moment as the team now seem ready for post-season action.  If the Sharks can get into the play-offs I think we could be in for some fireworks.

On Saturday it was back to Leeds Carnegie for two massive games.  The first saw the Division 4 team take on UWIC Archers in a semi-final encounter.

The home team played as complete a game as was possible with every player getting on the score sheet.  Scott Richards with 19 and last week’s star, Leon Gabbidon with 18 were excellent and led all scorers. 

The main threats for Archers were Matthew Garton with 15, Matt Norman with 14 and Ben Hughes with 13.  The home team ran out winners by 87 points to 56 and now take on Loughborough in the Championship game this Saturday at Derby.

So the stage was set for the second game at Leeds Carnegie as their senior team got ready to take on Newie Nets in the Division 2 Quarter Final.

As the game was about to start in walked Yuri Matischen and Sharks Head Coach Atiba Lyons.  It was wonderful to see them in the house and the home team certainly gave them something to enjoy.

Carnegie were simply breathtaking, with Aki Fagbohun leading the way with 20 points including three threes.  Fagbohun had to lead from the front as the Nets stayed with Leeds for quite a while.  Furthermore the Nets were playing sensational defence on Robert Stockwell who at times could not even see the ball.

The scores were tied at the end of the first 20 a piece and Fagbohun had 10 of those.  The star for Newi Nets was Pau Feliu Orive who was matching Fagbohun shot for shot and who also had 10.

In the second quarter, Carnegie began to pull away and it was Fagbohun again doing the business but now Stockwell was beginning to find his range.  He opened up with two monster threes, right off the coach's playbook, and didn’t look back. 

For the rest of the game it was more of the same with Fagbohun, and Stockwell finishing on 20 a piece and Istvan Herczeg chipping in 18, including some awesome work in the paint.

Orive would be the games’ highest scorer with 25 including 4 threes.  His personal performance was a joy to see but what was even better was the team play of Leeds Carnegie who ran out winners 101-67.

Coach Matt Newby can be well pleased with his days work.

That leaves the final game of the weekend which saw the Everton Tigers take on Newcastle Eagles at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. 

This was a match-up that I had been waiting for for a number of weeks. It was the first of three games which I had predicted would decide the destination of this seasons' BBL League Championship.

Well, to be honest, it wasn’t a great game as the Eagles never looked in any kind of trouble, but what a great event it was with in excess of 5000 fans packing out the Arena. 

The Eagles won it at a canter, 90-79 with great performances from Reggie Jackson, 21 and 16 points from Trey Moore. 

For the Tigers the ever dependable Andre Smith led all scorers with 32 while Richard Midgley chipped in with 20.

There were many VIPs in the house including Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, The leader of Liverpool City Council Warren Bradley, and the Chairman of England Basketball Roger Moreland were in the house.

Keith Mair, Chief Executive of England Basketball was also present, and iIt was also good to see Atiba Lyons of the Sharks there again, taking a look at the day’s event. 

This had been another massive basketball weekend and it was a pleasure to be a part of it.

Later

Mike S