Big Season for the Sharks begins in Newcastle

British Basketball League Regular Season

The British Basketball League and your B. Braun Sheffield Sharks are back! We’ve got a short wait until we take our bow in the new Canon Medical Arena but until then, check out our mouth-watering season opener on the road in Newcastle. We’ve retained seven of the Sharks that shone so brightly at the back end of last year and added five very exciting prospects for the campaign to come. And first up, we face a Newcastle side that have gone all out on building a stacked roster. This one is going to be UNBEATABLE for an opening encounter!

Thursday – Eagles v Sharks – Vertu Motors Arena – 7.45pm

Watch – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsbGB7woeJ4

Ones To Watch

Malcolm Delpeche – 6’ 9” forward who has made the move north from Bristol Flyers. Averaged 10 points and 7 rebounds during the 2022-23 season and of course is twin brother of the Sharks Marcus!

Larry Austin Jr – Former British Basketball League Trophy winner with Cheshire Phoenix and exciting addition to the Eagles backcourt. Averaged 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals across 32 regular season games with the ‘Nix last time around.

Rickey McGill – The second eye-popping addition to the Eagles ball-handling department, McGill was formerly with the-then Plymouth Raiders in 2020-21, making the British Basketball League Trophy Final and averaging almost 28 points per game across the May Madness Play-Off series. Has most recently played in New Zealand.

Jordan Johnson – Standout number three in the Eagles backcourt is Jordan Johnson. Former G-Leaguer who has just completed an impressive spell in Germany’s ProA. Remembered fondly for his time north of the border in 2021/22 when he averaged 18 points and 8 assists during the regular season.

Last Meeting

April 7th 2023 – Newcastle Eagles (Johnson 26 Cohn 14 Gordon 10) 71 B. Braun Sheffield Sharks (Ramsey 15 Koch 13 Nichols 13) 82

Shark Bites

The Sharks start their 30th season in the British Basketball League with Coach Atiba Lyons in charge for his 16th campaign.

The Sharks have won 8 of their last 9 games against the Eagles, having prevailed in 3 of the 4 matches last season.

In 12 visits to the Eagles home court, the Vertu Motors Arena, the Sharks have managed 9 wins.

With 7 players returning to the Sharks from last season, this is the joint most since 8 came back in 2015-16.

The 29 previous seasons have seen 17 first day wins and the 11 day one away games have brought 7 wins.

SharkNation

Get the date in your diary – Sunday October 8th – when in an historic afternoon, your B.Braun Sheffield Sharks play their first game at their new home – the Canon Medical Arena. And we have an exciting team to match! Coming back to the South Yorkshire hardwood are skipper Rodney Glasgow Jr, Bennett Koch, Jordan Ratinho, Jalon Pipkins, Devearl Ramsey, Marcus Delpeche and Nate Montgomery. Joining them are our thrilling new signings Jubril Adekoya, Terrell Allen, RJ Eytle Rock, Zach Walton and Parker Stewart. We’re spending a little time on the road until the new ‘Tank’ is ready but we’re sure you’re going to love these guys and our new Arena. Keep your eyes peeled on our social media for information on how you can follow the Sharks and join the #SharkNation.

Image: Bristol Sport