Four of the BBL Championship’s top five were in action on Friday night as Worcester Wolves, in particular, and Esh Group Eagles Newcastle made gains, while One Health Sharks Sheffield and London Lions lost ground.

In the night’s big game, the Wolves completed a season double over fellow title contenders London Lions by handing them their biggest defeat of the season, 93-64, with 20 points and 15 rebounds from Will Creekmore. A 15-2 surge in the second quarter proved decisive in sending them back to the summit of the league table.

Elsewhere, the leaders heading into the night, the Sharks, suffered a setback with their first home defeat of the season to the in-form Glasgow Rocks, 72-77. Sterling Davis shot 73% from the field for his 24 points as the Rocks made it five wins in six games.

Finally, the Eagles put a century on the board for the seventh time this season in beating Birmingham Knights 111-75, seeing them jump to second in the table. Darius Defoe dominated in the paint with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Charles Smith had 13 points and 12 assists.

Birmingham Knights almost had the perfect Christmas present but in the end Manchester Giants ran out winners after a superb fourth quarter.

The West Midlands club led by three heading into the final quarter and held a nine point lead with eight minutes to play but 19 unanswered points from Manchester turned the match on its head.

Threes from David Watts and James Jones made the win safe for the visitors as Knights wait for their first BBL Championship victory continues onto next Saturday’s away game at league leaders Worcester Wolves.

Leicester Riders and Cheshire Phoenix will be able to enjoy Christmas in a festive mood after registering important victories in the BBL Championship on Sunday evening.

The defending BBL Champions from Leicester jumped to the second spot in the standings following a 91-82 victory against Plymouth University Raiders.

Jay Couisnard had a big game for Riders once again, scoring a game-high 21 points, also adding seven rebounds and six assists, while Trevor Setty finished with 20 points and eight boards in a losing effort for Raiders.

In the other game of the day, Cheshire Phoenix claimed a convincing 99-88 win against Durham Wildcats on the road in Newton Aycliffe, despite a poor start.

The trio of Reggie Middleton, Dominique Coleman and Victor Moses combined for an amazing 82 points, as Phoenix made it four wins in a row and improved to a 7-8 record.