Sharks take Trophy as Eagles falter in Championship

The game went down to the wire as Riders had two chances to take the lead, through Jamell Anderson and Jay Cousinard, but could not convert either before BJ Holmes was fouled by Couisnard with 8 seconds to play.

The American guard showed nerves of steel to sink both free-throws and give Atiba Lyons’ side their third piece of silverware in four seasons.

Sharks had outscored the Riders in each of the first three periods, but a 13-2 Riders run dragged them back into the game to set up the grandstand finish.

Holmes led all scorers with 25 points, seven rebounds and three assists to take the MVP award with Mike Tuck and Demetrius Jemison each adding 15 points and seven boards for the Sharks.

Cousinard top scored for the Riders with 21 points and five rebounds while GB international Drew Sullivan finishing with 16 points, eight boards and four blocks.

There was also plenty of excitement in the BBL Championship as Newcastle Eagles missed out on the chance to go top with a shock 100-94 home loss against Surrey Heat on Friday.

The Eagles trailed by as many as 21 points in the third quarter, but an impressive 16-0 start to the final period got the home side back to within three points and a Charles Smith basket got them within a point a minute later, but that was as close as they would get as the Heat held off the challenge in the closing stages and secured the all-important victory to remain in fifth position in the table. Smith finished with a game-high 31 points but Travis Holmes’ 19 points for the Heat proved just as valuable.

Heat made it a winning weekend and became one of three sides tied in third spot with a 99-71 hammering of Mersey Tigers, with Travis Holmes again leading them with 26 points as they never looked back following a 29-4 first period.

Worcester Wolves also recorded a pair of wins, starting with a 94-76 victory over the London Lions at Worcester University on Friday.

A 22-9 start to the game from the Wolves set the tone for the majority of the contest as the home side led from tip-to-buzzer and were able to hold off a resilient fightback from the Lions in the closing stages to secure the all-important victory.

Wolves’ Alex Owumni led all scorers with 25 points while Lions’ Rod Brown had 20.

On Sunday Kai Williams returned to haunt his former club as the Wolves crushed Cheshire Phoenix 121-90 at Northgate Arena.

Williams was on fire and torched his ex-employers for 29 points with an excellent performance, which witnessed the guard also take seven rebounds.

A blistering start to the contest saw Wolves open up a quick-fire double-digit lead and they had more than doubled the tally of their hosts after ten minutes, when they moved 25-12 ahead as they set up an eighth straight BBL Championship win.

Finally, Durham Wildcats kept their chances of securing a play-off berth alive thanks to a hard-fought 87-76 victory over the Mersey Tigers at Knowsley Leisure and Culture Park on Friday night.

Andrew Keister led the scoring for the Wildcats with 18 points, but it was Phil Wait who led all scorers in the game as he netted 21 points for the Tigers, but it was not enough to stop them slipping to another defeat.

Story – BBL

Photos – MPhotography