EBL Junior Final Fours Weekend 2010; Results & Analysis - Hoopsfix.com

EBL Junior Final Fours Weekend 2010; Results & Analysis

So the England Basketball League Junior Final Fours 2010 took place this weekend at the EIS Sheffield, blood was drawn, tears were shed and champions crowned in what was a great two days of basketball showcasing some of the future basketball stars of Britain. See below for final standings in each category, followed by full results and then  at the bottom a few random notes and thoughts from myself.

EBL Junior Final Fours 2010 Final Standings & Results

Under 18 Men

1st Westminster Warriors
2nd Reading Rockets
3rd Manchester Magic
4th Sheffield Sharks

Results
Semi Final One
Reading Rockets beat Manchester Magic 78-65

Semi Final Two
Westminster Warriors beat Sheffield Junior Sharks 75-70

Third Place Playoff
Manchester Magic beat Sheffield Junior Sharks 65-60

Final
Westminster Warriors beat Reading Rockets 103-91

Under 16 Boys

1st Milton Keynes Lions
2nd Manchester Magic
3rd London Pioneers
4th Sheffield Junior Sharks

Results
Semi Final One
Manchester Magic beat London Pioneers 69-58

Semi Final Two
Milton Keynes Lions beat Sheffield Junior Sharks 82-55

Third Place Playoff
London Pioneers beat Sheffield Junior Sharks 79-74

Final
Milton Keynes Lions beat Manchester Magic 72-68

Under 14 Boys

1st Cheshire Jets
2nd Manchester Magic
3rd Newham All Star Sports Academy
4th Ipswich Tomcats

Results
Semi Final One
Cheshire Jets beat Ipswich Tomcats 91-73

Semi Final Two
Manchester Magic beat Newham All Star Sports Academy 68-66

Third Place Playoff
Newham All Star Sports Academy beat Ipswich Tomcats 77-48

Final
Cheshire Jets beat Manchester Magic 80-66

Under 18 Women

1st Haringey Angels
2nd Sevenoaks Suns
3rd Manchester Mystics
4th City of Birmingham Force

Results
Semi Final One
Haringey Angels beat Manchester Mystics 56-52

Semi Final Two
Sevenoaks Suns beat City of Birmingham Force 64-42

Third Place Playoff
Manchester Mystics beat City of Birmingham Force 71-58

Final
Haringey Angels beat Sevenoaks Suns 58-37

Under 16 Girls

1st Haringey Angels
2nd Sevenoaks Suns
3rd Nottingham Wildcats
4th Manchester Mystics

Results
Semi Final One
Eastside Eagles beat Manchester Mystics 51-50 (OT)

Semi Final Two
Haringey Angels beat Nottingham Wildcats 68-48

Third Place Playoff
Nottingham Wildcats beat Manchester Mystics 43-40

Final
Haringey Angels beat Eastside Eagles 59-42

Under 14 Girls

1st Haringey Angels
2nd Sevenoaks Suns
3rd Southend Swifts
4th Cheshire Jets

Results
Semi Final One
Haringey Angels beat Cheshire Jets 79-33

Semi Final Two
Sevenoaks Suns beat Southend Swifts 63-48

Third Place Playoff
Southend Swifts beat Cheshire Jets 79-66

Final
Haringey Angels beat Sevenoaks Sun 73-51

Notes/Random Thoughts

  • The Under 18 men was definitely the highlight of the weekend for me, it’s amazing what difference a couple of years can make, with players being so much quicker, stronger and athletic.
  • Ryan Martin was named MVP of the Under 18 final finishing with 30 points and 15 rebounds. Equally as impressive was Reading’s Adam Thoseby who finished with 34 points, nailing 8 threes in one of the most impressive shooting displays I have seen this season. Teddy Okereafor was also impressive in both games for Westminster.
  • I hate to be negative about referees again after the BUCS weekend, but the refereeing was downright disgraceful. It seemed as though England Basketball were using the weekend as a ‘showcase’ for younger referees. In my opinion this wasn’t the time or the place to allow less competent/experienced referees to build up their experience. A lot of terrible calls, including a player being bloodied and no whistle being blown, and the entire Sheffield-Westminster U18 men’s game. In the most important games of the year, EB should be using the best they have.
  • Milton Keynes Lion Jordan Spencer came up CLUTCH in the Under 16 boys final, hitting a number of big shots to seal the revenge win for MK after losing to Manchester in the Cup final in February. Biggest performance of the weekend in my opinion, and a well deserved MVP.
  • Another little gripe was the scheduling. It seems mad that, with the highlight of the weekend for the majority of people being the Under 18’s men, they put on both semi finals at the same time meaning people couldn’t watch both (also meaning I couldn’t film both). This was the case for the majority of age groups, having the semi finals scheduled at the same time. Added to that, I think it’d also be better if they spread out each age group over both days so teams are better rested for the final. Added to that (!), for the Under 14s, in both boys and girls as far as I’m aware, a couple of teams had to play 20 minutes after just finishing a game!
  • A dominant performance in all groups for the females from Haringey Angels, winning the U14, U16 and U18 titles. Hard to argue that they have the best junior girls/women’s programme in the country with results like that. Haringey Angels Jamila Thompson, Jay-Ann Harriot and Rochelle Milton were named MVP of the Women’s U18 Final,  U16 Final and U14 Final respectively.
  • In the only U14 game I saw of the weekend (semi final between Cheshire Jets and Ipswich Tomcats), I gotta say I was impressed. Definitely wasn’t expecting such a high standard, let alone seeing kids dunking in the lay-up lines!
  • There’s an interesting discussion going on at the moment over on Whatsbev about scrapping 3rd/4th place playoff games. Couldn’t agree more, no-one seems that bothered who finishes 3rd/4th, and to be honest all weekend those games seemed to lack the same intensity from the players. Should be a case of win or go home!
  • No real crazy highlights from the weekend in terms of video, though I would put Sheffield’s Joseph Baugh up there amongst the best U18 dunkers in the country (just behind John Odumosu).
  • Tough weekend for Manchester who had a team in every category apart from U14 girls and didn’t manage to win anything. Still a testament to the strength of their program.
  • The Cheshire Jets’ Cameron Mackay was named U14’s MVP after dropping 32 in the final.
  • Westminster Warriors 09/10 is a great story for anyone that is interested. Group of friends/extremely talented ballers who gave up individual stardom and statistics to join together and win a Chip. Would like to do a full article on this in the near future.
  • If anyone can get me leading scorers from each game to add to the results, that’d be great and I’ll add them in.

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