Newcastle Eagles 88 (24,45,66) (Moore 26, Toney 18, Bridge 15)
Everton Tigers 77 (18,41,67) (Smith 20, Bailey 16, Gross 13)
Aggregate Score 176 - 159
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Newcastle Eagles defeated the Everton Tigers by 88 points to 77 on the night to advance to the BBL Trophy Final on an aggregate score of 176 - 159.
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This was the second leg of the second semi final of this years BBL Trophy. The Eagles had won the first leg away on Merseyside earlier in the week and were looking to keep that advantage and get themselves back into the BBL Trophy Final.
This is a trophy the Eagles won in 2005 and then retained in 2006.
Last time these two teams met in a two legged semi final, it was the Everton Tigers who won and who went on to win the BBL Cup this year.
Well the teams were assembled with the exception of Lynard Stewart of the Eagles who was in his walking clothes. He is recovering from his knee operation and is confident that he will be ready for the BBL Trophy Final if his boys could get the job done.
Many people complained that this game should have been the final but as I explained to all who would listen, this competition was developed as a regional midweek competition to give the teams fewer miles to travel.
Further, it would always be a North v South final. That's just the way it is. Now that teams have more full time players and nobody seems to worry about the travel anymore, then maybe we should look at the possibility of changing it up in the future.
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But for now we are at the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle for what will be another great basketball night. The senario was simple; If the Eagles won or lost by fewer than 6 then they would go through to the 2009 BBL Trophy Final where the would meet the Guildford Heat.
If the Eagles lost by 7 or more then it would be the Tigers going through to their second final of the season.
To suggest that this was a tense affair is putting it mildly. You could cut the atmosphere with a blunt instrument. A huge crowd was on hand as the ball went up to begin the game. That is a huge home crowd, the Tigers fans, over a hundred for an away game, were stuck in traffic on the A1. The game would be well on the way when they finally took their seats.
Knowing all about the A1 on a Friday evening, I took the opportunity to head to Newcastle nice and early and arrived at about 4:00pm. I spent the afternoon hanging out with Lynard Stewart in his cool pad overlooking the river. We spoke about his high school days, his college days and about his youth growing up in the streets of Philly. It all reminded me of two things, The Fresh Prince, Will Smith and his tune 'Summertime' and that great film White men can't jump.
It was a joy hanging out with Nard and hearing all his stories. I hooked him up with the New Sunset Radio which is my radio station playing all the best soul and r&b tunes.
At one point he sent a text to Reggie 'Action' Jackson telling him to check out mikeshaft.com to see the pictures from the first leg of this semi final. (See it here).
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We head down to the arena and get there just before 7. Nard is still using a crutch and has an icepad on his knee below his tracksuit.
And so to the game and what a game it is.
Eagles got off to a nice start but couldn't blow the Tigers away. In the first half the home team led by as many as 10 but the Tigers would no go away.
At the break the Eagles led 45-41. They had nailed 5 threes to the Tigers 2 and Trey Moore and Tafari Toney had 11 points a piece. Probably the most glaring stat was that the Eagles had out rebounded the Tigers 20-13. Andrew Bridge already had 5 boards to go with his 9 points.
For the Tigers Marcus Bailey had 11 points with former Eagle Olu Babalola with 8. Olu was given a very warm welcome back to his old stomping ground. Richard Midgley was 0 for 4 including 0 for 3 from the arc. He had just 2 points from the stripe. His welcome back to the Arena was luke warm to say the least.
The third quarter was a different affair as Andre Smith began to find the basket despite close attention from the defence. By the end of the third he would amass 18 points, with Marcus Bailey chipping in with 17. Bailey was 7 for 8 from the field.
There had been 5 lead changes in this quarter, and now it was the Eagles turn to 'not go away'. 15 points each for Trey Moore, Andrew Bridge and Tafari Toney kept them in this one. The score at the end of the third was 66 - 67. The Tigers led by 1 on the night and now trailed by just 5 on the tie. As Chandler Bing might have said, could this be any closer?
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Everyone in the hall, from Chairmen Paul Blake and Gary Townsend down, was nervous.
It was that tense!
The fourth quarter was all together different as the Eagles finally took control. Trey Moore was stunning and led from the front. He would finish with 26 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. He'd gone 9 for 19 from the field.
Trey Moore played every one of the 40 minutes of this game on a sprained ankle and Head Coach Fab Flournoy will be hoping it doesn't heal anytime soon.
Tafari Toney would finish with 18 points and 7 rebounds while the ever dependable Andrew Bridge would finish with 15 and 9. Reggie Jackson added 13 points.
For the Tigers it was Andre Smith once again who would lead with 20 points and 6 rebounds while Marcus Bailey added 16 points going 7 for 10 from the field.
The final score was 88 to the Eagles and 77 to the Tigers. An 11 point win on the night and a 17 point win on the tie.
These two teams are the best in the country at the moment. The Tigers have lost a little momentum since they lifted the BBL Cup at the NIA Birmingham in January, but they are still at the top of the BBL with the Eagles right on their tails 1 loss behind. If the Eagles beat the Heat in the BBL Trophy Final, it will be 1 trophy a piece with the League and Championship to be decided. There will be no clean sweep this season but someone could still do the treble.
The battles will continue. The next encounter between the two will take place at the 6000 seater Echo Arena in Liverpool on Sunday the 29th of March, another must see game. Word is that the Eagles are bringing a massive travelling crowd for this one. Two days later they go at it again, this time back on Tyneside at the Metro Radio Arena
The final game of the regular season between the Eagles and the Tigers takes place at Fortress Greenbank on Sunday the 12th of April.
There is no doubt in my mind that the outcome of these three games will decide the destination of the BBL League Champoinship this year. The teams are 1 and 1 at the moment but we are not even at half time in this captivating contest. To be the best you got to beat the best.
Watch this space as this battle continues.
Later
Mike S
