A relatively quiet week with just five games saw the first three semi-finalists in the BBL Cup confirmed.
In Friday night’s BBL TV cup quarter-final clash, Bristol Flyers pulled off arguably their biggest win of the season after knocking out Worcester Wolves with an impressive 90-82 victory on the road. Doug Herring Jr produced a big-time performance for his side with 32 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Alif Bland added 17 and Greg Streete hit 4-4 from deep on his way to 16 points. Chavis Holmes and Alex Owumi led the hosts with 16 apiece as they were unable to recover from the Flyers’ strong start.
Joining Bristol in the last four were the runners-up in the last two years, Newcastle Eagles. The defending league champions extended their winning streak to eight games since their opening day loss to Worcester after seeing off Leeds Force with an 83-66 victory. The visitors battled well to stay in the game in the first half, trailing by just five points before the Eagles opened the game up in the third with a 33-13 quarter to take control but for some further late resistance from Leeds. Charles Smith top scored with 22 points and 9 rebounds with Rahmon Fletcher adding 20 points. All five starters for the Force reached double-figures led by Branimir Mikulic’s 16pts/10rbs double-double.
Sheffield Sharks were victorious in the final BBL Cup quarter-final on Friday after a late surge powered them to a 91-84 triumph over Cheshire Phoenix. American Allen Payne had an efficient shooting night with 9-11 FG for 23 points from the bench with compatriot BJ Holmes adding a 20 point haul while Nick Lewis also stepped up from the bench with 17 points of his own. The visitors edged a high-scoring third quarter with a barrage of triples landed by Taylor King on his way to 27 points, although his tally would finish there before fouling out. Mike DiNunno scored 16 from the bench with Julius Hodge playing the full 40 minutes for his 14 points and there was a customary double-double for Demond Watt with 13 points and 14 boards.
Head Coach John Coffino’s side would bounce back from their cup defeat to earn their third league victory of the season with a 92-72 win against the Flyers. A 15-0 close to the third quarter proved pivotal for the Nix as they saw off the spirited challenge of the visitors, who had been very much in the game up until that point. Herring again led Bristol in scoring with 25 points while King dropped another 27 for Cheshire along with 11 rebounds with Watt contributing a valuable 21 points.
The other league game over the weekend saw Glasgow Rocks pull off a remarkable comeback from 21 points down at half-time to defeat Durham 83-81 on the road. JaJuan Smith was influential in the turnaround and finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists while Kieron Achara added 23 points. The Wildcats had started off like a train, racing into a 32-9 lead at the end of the first, shooting 80% from the field while their opponents struggled with 4-17. Durham’s lead was still as big as 21 points at the half before the visitors began to chip away at the deficit all the way until the final minute when Tayo Ogedengbe put his side ahead for the first time in the game and they managed to hold on to secure a memorable win. Ralph Bucci racked up an impressive 20 points and 15 rebounds with American big John Puk playing just over 7 minutes before fouling out while Chris Jones also added 20 points for the hosts.
Results: Friday– (all BBL Cup) Worcester Wolves 82-90 Bristol Flyers, Newcastle Eagles 83-66 Leeds Force, Sheffield Sharks 91-84 Cheshire Phoenix; Sunday– (both Championship) Durham Wildcats 81-83 Glasgow Rocks, Cheshire Phoenix 92-72 Bristol Flyers.
Standings: Eagles 6-1; Riders 5-1; Wolves 4-1; Giants 4-3; Lions 3-1; Sharks 3-2; Rocks 3-3; Wildcats/Nix 3-4; Flyers/Raiders 3-5; United 1-5; Force 0-6.
Star 5- JaJuan Smith, Doug Herring Jr, Allen Payne, Taylor King, Kieron Achara
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