BBL ChampionshipSheffield Sharks extended their lead at the top of the BBL to six points after an 86-97 win on the road at Guildford Heat.

That, coupled with Newcastle Eagles losing 104-90 at Worthing Thunder, gives the Sharks a bit of breathing room having lost one game fewer than the Eagles, Marshall MK Lions, Cheshire Jets and Glasgow Rocks.

Sharks were made to work hard for their win, with a 19- 1 run over the end of the third quarter and into the fourth breaking the match open 65-83 in their favour. Backcourt duo Mike Cook and Ryan Patton were once again on form for Sheffield scoring 29 points and 22 points respectively.

Second placed Newcastle Eagles couldn't shake off a gritty Worthing Thunder side as the hosts pulled away to victory with an 11-0 run to end the match. Thunder's Reggie Bratton led all scorers with 32 as the south coast club moves into the final play-off spot.

History was made in the East Midlands as Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders equalled the highest ever winning margin in a BBL contest with a 110-38 win over PAWS London Capital.

The September 1987 match between Crystal Palace and Livingstone in which Palace were crushed 37-109 is the only other game with a 72 point differential. Riders had many runs in the match of which a 23-6 burst in the third quarter made the match absolutely safe at 72-22.

In Devon it was Everton Tigers who took home the points with a 69-84 win at Plymouth Raiders. The hosts never led as Tigers held them at bay with an excellent team effort.

Guildford Heat 86 – 97 Sheffield Sharks

Guildford Heat 86 (29,50,65) (Langhorne 23, Martin 19, Drakeford 17)
Sheffield Sharks 97 (24,46,77) (Cook 29, Patton 22, Cauthorn 17)

Mike CookSheffield Sharks extended their lead at the top of the BBL to six points after an 86-97 win on the road at Guildford Heat.

Sharks were made to work hard for their win, with a 19- 1 run over the end of the third quarter and into the fourth breaking the match open 65-83 in their favour. Backcourt duo Mike Cook (pictured) and Ryan Patton were once again on form for Sheffield scoring 29 points and 22 points respectively.

Guildford enjoyed the better of the first ten minutes with an 8-0 run, including two Kenny Langhorne threes, to close the quarter putting them 29-24 up.

Heat's lead peaked at 33-26 before Sharks quickly tied the match at 34-34 and then went in front 41-46 on the back of good work by Todd Cauthorn and Cook. Guildford again finished well though to take a 50-46 lead into the interval.

Two Ryan Patton threes and one from Tafari Toney set the scene for an excellent third quarter by Sheffield. They took the lead for good at 57-58 and another Patton three capped a 10-0 run to make it 63- 74.

Taking a 65-77 lead into the final stanza, the Sharks rammed home their advantage with threes by Patton and Cook to give them their biggest margin of the night at 65-83.

There was no way back from that for Heat although they did manage to trim the score to single digits before Cauthorn's final score capped a good night for Sheffield.

Worthing Thunder 104 – 90 Newcastle Eagles

Worthing Thunder 104 (22,46,76) (Bratton 32, Makalainen 23, Prezzie-Blue 15)
Newcastle Eagles 90 (21,49,72) (Smith 19, Bridge 17, Jackson/Chapman 15)

Reggie BrattonWorthing Thunder moved back into the play-off positions with a well-earned 104-90 win over reigning BBL champions Newcastle Eagles.

The defeat for Eagles leaves them six points adrift of Sheffield Sharks at the top of the table, although Fab Flournoy's team have two games in hand.

Newcastle controlled the first quarter and led by six (15-21) on Reggie Jackson's two. A 6-0 burst by Thunder capped by a Prezzie-Blue three put the home team on top 22-21.

Eagles again put themselves on top to take a 33-40 lead midway through the second quarter and they stretched it out to nine (39-48) before Thunder responded to close to 46-49 at half time.

Thunder were making a habit of ending quarters well and they did it again in the third with an 8-0 tear taking them into the final stanza 76-72 in front. That momentum was carried into the early stages of the fourth quarter with Reggie Bratton's (pictured) three putting Worthing 85-78 up.

Eagles fought hard to trim the gap and were back at three (93-90) on Charles Smith's free throw before an 11-0 run by Thunder to end the match made the victory safe.

Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders 110 – 38 PAWS London Capital


Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders 110 (19,49,84) (A Williams 22, Johnson 21, Wierzbicki 17)
PAWS London Capital 38 (9,16,29) (Ataha 11, Gariba 9, Offiah 9)

Adam WilliamsHistory was made in the East Midlands as Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders equalled the highest ever winning margin in a BBL contest with a 110-38 win over PAWS London Capital.

The September 1987 match between Crystal Palace and Livingstone in which Palace were crushed 37-109 is the only other game with a 72 point differential. Riders had many runs in the match of which a 23-6 burst in the third quarter made the match absolutely safe at 72-22.

Capital led once at 6-7 but once LaTaryl Williams had put Riders back in front they surged away to 19-9 at the end of the first quarter. Two Adam Williams (pictured) threes closed the second period and capped a 19-0 run to take it to 49-16.

A further 10 unanswered points began the third quarter before back-to-back Santa Ataha three pointers broke the drought for Capital. The lead was 84-29 at the end of three quarters.

Riders continued to score heavily in the final stanza with LaTaryl Williams dunk giving Leicester their biggest lead to end the contest.

Airwaves Plymouth Raiders 69 – 84 Everton Tigers

Airwaves Plymouth Raiders 69 (14,34,58) (Lasker 23, Valencia 17, Hilleary 14)
Everton Tigers 84 (16,39,65) (Babalola 18, Gumbs 16, Bell 15)

Darrel BethuneEverton Tigers took home the points from the south west with a 69-84 win at Plymouth Raiders. The hosts never led as Tigers held them at bay with an excellent team effort.

Tigers held a slender lead throughout the first quarter as both sides struggled to find any offensive rhythm. Darrel Bethune's (pictured) bucket gave them a 14-16 advantage after 10 minutes.

After Raiders tied the match for the final time at 26-26 a 5-0 Tigers burst put the visitors in charge. The five point gap was maintained to half time as Everton went into the locker room 34-39 on top.

Two Andrew Thomson free throws helped Tigers to a double-digit (47-57) lead midway through the third quarter. Raiders returning guard Andrew Lasker scored seven points to help trim the gap to 58-65 heading into the final stanza.

Everton totally dominated the fourth quarter with a 13-3 start to the period handing them their biggest lead of the match at 61-78.

BBL Championship Table

P W L Pts
1 Sheffield Sharks 16 13 3 26
2 Newcastle Eagles 14 10 4 20
3 Marshall Milton Keynes Lions 13 9 4 18
4 Cheshire Jets 12 8 4 16
5 Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders 14 8 6 16
6 Guildford Heat 12 7 5 14
7 Everton Tigers 12 6 6 12
8 Worthing Thunder 14 6 8 12
9 Glasgow Rocks 9 5 4 10
10 Worcester Wolves 11 3 8 6
11 PAWS London Capital 13 3 10 6
12 Essex Pirates 11 2 9 4
13 Airwaves Plymouth Raiders 11 1 10 2

Source: www.bbl.org.uk

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