BBL Championship
Newcastle Eagles 88 – 78 Caledonian Gladiators (17-20, 15-20, 24-24, 32-14)
Eagles – Gordon 32, Hamlet 25, Mockford 15; Gladiators – Durham 24, Alihudzic 16, Sloan 14
B. Brown Sheffield Sharks 80-71 Manchester Giants (28-17, 10-13, 20-13, 22-28)
Sharks – Nichols 19, Koch 16, Pepkins 12; Giants – Williams 19, Lewis 14, Roberson 12
Leicester Raiders 111-68 Plymouth City Patriots (23-15, 33-18, 25-15, 30-20)
Raiders – Whelan 22, McKenzie 20, Jackson/Loving 10; Patriots – Hassan 25, Dang Akodu 22, Pisanthi 9
Bristol Flyers 87-73 Cheshire Phoenix (24-18, 21-17, 21-18, 21-20)
Flyers – Olison 20, Bell lii/Delpeche 19, Watson-Gayle 14; Phoenix – Evans/Anderson 18, Archibald 10, Jack/Hudson 8
The Newcastle Eagles produced an inspiring comeback to win 88-78 in a powerhouse game against the Caledonia Gladiators on Friday night.
Heroic attacking performances from Justin Gordon and Javon Hamlet kept the team within striking distance throughout before Ben Mockford led with a three-point barrage down the stretch.
Heading into the season series, the Gladiators started better, posting the scoring with some solid team play.
The game opened in the second quarter. Caledonia seemed to have escaped from Newcastle by forcing the ball in and dominating the glass, going into the first half with an 11-point lead over their counterparts.
At the halfway point, the BBL Cup winners lead eight.
However, the Eagles refused to go far, and dueled strongly in the third quarter, as Hamlet joined Gordon in attacking the Gladiators’ basket.
After toe-to-toe in the third period, Newcastle stepped up dramatically.
The Eagles came out of the fight, tying the game with seven minutes left, before Mockford took over the shooting, shooting twice in a row to put the Eagles ahead.
Mockford didn’t stop there, opening the lead with a dagger from behind the arc in the last minute.
When the tactical mistakes began, Newcastle held their nerve, clutching the ball to secure the daring victory.
It was a memorable night for North Carolina’s Gordon, who added four rebounds and three assists to his 32 points while shooting a perfect three for three from deep.
Newcastle’s ninth win of the season makes the battle for eighth place an interesting one, while Gareth Murray’s side will get a chance for revenge when they welcome the Eagles to the Emirates Stadium on April 20.
Elsewhere, Bristol Flyers secured at least a third-place finish with an 87-73 win over Cheshire Phoenix at the SGS College Arena.
Malcolm Delbici’s 19 points and 14 rebounds led the way for Bristol, who is gathering momentum heading into the postseason.
Andreas Capoulas’ team set the pace early, dominated the boards and attacked Phoenix with determination for most of the first quarter.
However, Cheshire responded five minutes later, inserting themselves into the game by scoring their first nine points from a three-point ground.
The Flyers took a ten-point lead in the first half, which seemed deserved due to their bruising inside the game.
A physical and aggressive third quarter followed, with things spiraling out of control, resulting in a ruthless offense and the ejection of Cheshire captain Larry Austin, leaving an already depleted Phoenix team in a precarious position.
Both teams traded three as the Flyers struggled to put this one to bed. However, excellent attacking display from Tevin Olison and a giant all-around performance from Delpeche put the game out of Cheshire’s reach.
An acrobatic finish by Jelani Watson put Gayle Cherry ahead for Bristol, who moved into second place with two games in hand over Leicester.
The Flyers’ win completes this year’s clean sweep of Phoenix, who now find themselves in a four-way battle for fourth place heading into the playoffs.
In Yorkshire, B. Braun’s Sheffield Sharks take an 80-71 victory over the Manchester Giants at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre.
The Giants entered the game with bragging rights between the two teams, having defeated Sheffield United in their previous three meetings.
Sheffield established their attacking style early on, constantly feeding the ball in, while the Giants found themselves frustrated by turnovers.
Bennett Couch, who finished with a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds, stood out in the first half while earning a regular spot on the free throw line.
It will be all smiles at home for Delpeche tonight, as Marcus added a bite off the bench in the third quarter alongside Rodney Glasgow Jr.
Despite a valiant effort by Manchester’s Dirk Williams, bruising from in-play Sharks kept the Giants at bay.
Although Manchester fought well for fourth place, the Sharks took home the win, putting them level on points with their opponents, with a similar record.
It’s all for mid-table play, as Cheshire also share this 17-17 record heading into the play-offs.
The Leicester Raiders cruised to a comfortable 111-68 victory over the Plymouth City Patriots at Morningside Arena.
The Raiders put up an impressive offensive display, scoring by the committee to reach triple figures.
Great ball action kicked off, and Rob Paternostro’s team put their stamp on the game from the first quarter.
While Patrick Whelan led the way with 22 points and six rebounds, an infusion of energy from Kimball McKenzie and volume from Aaron Menzies made the Gulf impossible for the Patriots in the second half.
Plymouth’s woes weren’t helped by the sacking of goalkeeper Elvisi Ducha, who received both technical and athletic.
In the fourth inning, Menzies left the game with an injury. However, Leicester continued to get what they wanted on the offensive end, never forcing issues and allowing holes to present themselves.
Forward Blake Bowman punctuated the resounding victory with a crowd-pleasing dunk down the stretch as the Knights capped off a perfect night for home teams across the league.