BBL Week 5 Headlines: Lions need OT for eight straight, Giants beat Riders

Image credit: British Basketball League

It was a good week for the home teams with just one road victory coming from the latest round of British Basketball League action.

Four teams saw split weekends to keep the pack close together, while London were given their biggest test yet on the way to maintaining their perfect start.

Lions go to 8-0 in Monday OT thriller

In a rare Monday evening clash in the BBL, London needed to rally from a 14-point deficit before eventually overcoming Newcastle Eagles 109-104 in overtime. Matt Morgan’s red-hot streak shows no signs of stopping after firing in nine triples in a 30-point performance with London also welcoming back last season’s league MVP Sam Dekker from a long injury layoff.

The Lions had picked up their seventh successive league win on Friday night as they defeated Cheshire Phoenix 99-80 as Conor Morgan finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

Giants inflict second loss on Riders

Manchester Giants enjoyed their biggest win of the campaign so far as they had a big third quarter en route to beating Leicester Riders 94-80. Jamell Anderson played the full 40 minutes against his former side; finishing with an all-round effort of 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and six steals in the win.

The Giants were unable to back up the win on the road as they fell to an 83-67 loss to Cheshire Phoenix the following day behind 24 points from Maceo Jack, while Leicester had improved to 4-1 on Friday night after seeing off the winless Surrey Scorchers 91-74.

Sharks see off Gladiators at home

Sheffield Sharks produced another strong display in their new home with an 18-point victory over Caledonia Gladiators, 96-78. The hosts never looked back from a fast start with five players in double figures in the win.

Meanwhile, Caledonia had picked up their third league win on Thursday evening with a 99-83 success over Plymouth City Patriots, despite 26 points apiece from Taylor Johnson and TJ Attwood. The Patriots then dropped to 1-6 as they suffered another derby defeat at the hands of Bristol Flyers, going down 68-92 at home.

Results: Gladiators 99-83 Patriots; Riders 91-74 Scorchers; Lions 99-80 Phoenix; Patriots 68-92 Flyers; Giants 94-80 Riders; Sharks 96-78 Gladiators; Phoenix 83-67 Giants; Lions 109-104 Eagles (OT)

Standings: Lions 8-0; Riders 4-2; Phoenix, Flyers, Sharks 4-3, Gladiators 3-2; Eagles, Giants 2-4, Patriots 1-6; Scorchers 0-5

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