Six British Basketball games to watch during the lockdown

By Bradley Gains on March 29, 2020

Image credit: FIBA

With no basketball to look forward to for the foreseeable future, we’ve decided to pick out six games you should watch to help eradicate any boredom during the current lockdown.

EuroBasket Women 2019 QF – GB Senior Women v Hungary

Still not even a year old, but a tournament that goes down in British Basketball folklore. A remarkable run as GB advanced to the quarter-finals of a major competition for the first time with wins over Latvia, Ukraine and Montenegro to set up a last eight showdown with Hungary. And, the journey wasn’t done there as Chema Buceta’s side put together another impressive performance.

London 2012 Olympics – GB Senior Women v France

Oh, what might have been?! From one extreme to the other with Great Britain coming so close to a historic victory at the 2012 Olympics having held a three-point lead in the final minute of regulation. Celine Dumerc had other ideas and France spoiled the party in London after GB had already come up against Australia, Canada and Russia.

Note: The above stream continues into a pool game between USA and Czech Republic.

EuroBasket Women Qualifiers (2017) – GB Senior Women v Israel

Drama, drama, and more drama. This game had it all at the National Basketball Performance Centre in Manchester. The opening game of the EuroBasket Women 2019 qualifiers back in late 2017 really set the tone for GB’s campaign and there were more nail-biting encounters to come with the return fixture in Tel-Aviv as well as tough battles against Greece. A Handy finish awaits.

WBBL Playoffs Final 2016 – Team Northumbria v Nottingham Wildcats

The WBBL has thrown up some spectacular showpiece finals in its five-year history. And with no playoffs to look forward to after the current season got cancelled, we take it back to the 2016 finale at The O2 Arena. Nottingham Wildcats – featuring two would-be MVPs in Amber Stokes and Ashley Harris – going up against a Team Northumbria side looking to pull off a big win.

WEABL Championship Final 2016 – Barking Abbey v Charnwood

Another from the 2016 archives with the culmination of the WEABL’s inaugural season as Barking Abbey met Charnwood College at the Leicester Arena in a battle of two academy titans. South champions against the North champions with Chloe Gaynor coming up with the goods as MVP to deny Charnwood, who would go on to make the next three finals before winning their first title last year.

Hoopsfix All-Star Classic 2019 – Under-19 Women’s game

A couple of years in the making, the Hoopsfix All-Star Classic expanded over two days in 2019 and introduced a Women’s game for the first time. Showcasing the best rising female talent with the Under-19 rosters full of junior internationals and players departing for US colleges, led by Oregon’s Holly Winterburn capturing the MVP award.

Any other games you’ve been watching? Let us know at @HoopsfixWomen on all our social channels.

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