QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“A lot of people are saying that this game is the title decider but there are more games to [be] played and we need to win all of them to win the league, not just Friday’s game.

“We need to take them out of their comfort zone and make sure we finish off defensive possessions and rebound.”

CHARLES SMITH

EAGLES’ FORWARD

Esh Group Eagles Newcastle are on the verge of a fifth BBL Championship title in seven years after beating fellow contenders One Health Sharks Sheffield 82-78 at Sport Central. It gave the Eagles the head-to-head between the teams, and they will secure the title next weekend if they beat bottom two Surrey and Birmingham.

Darius Defoe, who has been there for all of those title wins, scored 19 points and Malik Cooke matched that tally and snatched 12 rebounds. Despite holding a commanding lead early on, it was that pair that scored five straight points to turn over a late deficit and secure the win.

Meanwhile, Worcester Wolves kept their title dream alive as they beat Durham Wildcats 88-66 with two of the performances of the night: Will Creekmore scored 36 and snatched 17 rebounds, while Zaire Taylor had 18 and 14 assists. To take the title, the Wolves must win all of their remaining games, and rely on Eagles losing next weekend.

Finally, Cheshire Phoenix drew level with London Lions in fifth place after winning 88-92 at the Copper Box, with Victor Moses (25) and Dominique Coleman (25) sharing 50 points. The teams meet to settle the head-to-head on Sunday, after a late Coleman three-pointer and a 10-0 burst sealed this win for the visitors.

Leicester Riders maintained their pursuit of a top two finish with an 87-79 home victory over Glasgow Rocks.

The defeat leaves the Rocks outside the play-off places but strengthens Riders position in the table ahead of their match at fourth placed One Health Sharks Sheffield on Sunday.

Anthony Downing led Riders’ scoring with 23 points while Chris Johnson and Daniel Northern had 20 each for Glasgow.

There was plenty of excitement in the five-game Super Sunday in the BBL Championship, as Worcester Wolves and One Health Sharks Sheffield snatched up hugely important wins to stay in the race for the BBL Championship title, while Glasgow Rocks, Plymouth University Raiders and Cheshire Phoenix also celebrated victories.

Will Creekmore scored a game-high 33 points for Wolves, who squeezed past the in-form Manchester Giants 94-86, despite leading only by a single point with a couple of minutes left on the clock.

Meanwhile, Sharks had an up-and-down game against against Leicester Riders, eventually taking a pretty convincing 71-60 victory against last year’s champs.

Elsewhere, Phoenix defeated London Lions for the second time this weekend, claiming a 103-97 victory behind 29 points from Reggie Middleton and 24 from Dominique Coleman to get a head-to-head advantage in the battle for fifth place.

Fighting for the two remaining playoff spots, Plymouth and Glasgow finished the weekend on a high note as well. Raiders beat Birmingham Knights 99-85, while Rocks overpowered Surrey United 91-76.