Huge weekend on the road coming up for the Sharks

Super League Basketball Championship

A huge pair of road games awaits the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks this coming weekend. Fresh from that scintillating three figure score against Bristol Flyers last Sunday, the Sharks now get to test themselves against the unbeaten Leicester Riders on Friday evening and follow that up with a trip to Cheshire on Sunday – scene of that astonishing 102-100 win back in early October. Double-headers don’t come any tougher than this pair and the Sharks will look to a fine away following to give them a boost on their travels.

Friday – Riders v Sharks – Mattioli Arena – 7.30pm

Watch – https://www.dazn.com/en-GB/fixture/ContentId:bk7qdslvnseapi6wzshixpvro/bk7qdslvnseapi6wzshixpvro

Ones To Watch

Zach Jackson – The Riders returnee was already averaging 18.8 points per game after the Trophy group stage, shooting 64% inside and 47% from beyond the arc. Followed that up with a 20 point, 4 rebound, 6 assist outing as Leicester took down Surrey by a 16 point margin.

Charles Thompson – The forward has proven to be hot off the glass with 9 boards per game during the Trophy and lit up the paint with a big double-double as the Riders beat Surrey 89ers by 66-82. His 12 point, 14 rebound game contained 5 offensive boards as the Midlanders kept up their unbeaten record.

Jaylin Hunter – Leicester’s playmaker has already established his credentials even at this early stage. 7.5 assists per game and 2.3 steals shows he is always switched on. 6 more dimes and 17 points came in Surrey win from the exciting guard.

Riley Abercrombie – Big three point threat with 11 makes in the Trophy and followed that up by going 3 of 7 against the 89ers.

Last Meeting

May 5th 2024 – B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 86 Leicester Riders 69

Sunday – Phoenix v Sharks – Cheshire Oaks Arena – 5.30pm

Watch - https://www.dazn.com/en-GB/fixture/ContentId:blme6rmddsnr5yhxi3nc74wt0/blme6rmddsnr5yhxi3nc74wt0

Ones To Watch

Skyler White – Three point shooting big and ‘Nix skipper for this season. Posted 11 points and 5 rebounds in Cheshire’s last game, a dead rubber 86-81 defeat away at Caledonia Gladiators.

TJ Atwood – Former Plymouth standout who has transitioned well to his new side. The ‘Nix have yet to take their Championship bow but Atwood caught the eye for his 14.6 points per game throughout their successful Trophy campaign.

Larry Austin Jr – Back in his spiritual home of Ellesmere Port, Austin is thrilling the Cheshire crowds with those terrific downhill bursts. 12 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists for the season so far but undoubtedly with much more to come.

Tahjai Teague – Deceptive forward who put up a big bid for extra minutes with 16 points against Caledonia. Went 4 of 8 from deep to show that he has additional dimensions to his game.

Last Meeting

October 6th 2024 – Cheshire Phoenix 100 B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 102

Shark Bites

Sharks debutant Donovan Clay produced the team’s first double-double of the season on Sunday against Bristol Flyers with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The Sharks finished the game on Sunday on 102 points having previously beaten Cheshire 102-100 in early October. Sunday was the 147th time the Sharks have reached 3 figures in their 1336 domestic fixtures. 102 appears 21 times with exactly 100 next most prolific on 16.

The last 2 full seasons have not seen 2 Sharks players score at least 20 points in the same game. The last time this happened was on 8th April 2022 – Antwain Johnson (27) and Bennett Koch (21). Just 10 games so far this season have already seen 2 instances. Drake Jeffries and Rodney Chatman both scored 21 against Manchester on 20th October and EC Matthews (21) and Rodney Chatman (24) combined against Bristol on 3rd November.

After the Sharks win against Bristol, they now need wins in 2 more games to reach a total of 850 in Championship, Cups, Trophy and Play Offs combined.

SharkNation

We know we’ve got a big following going down to Leicester on Friday and if you are joining us in Ellesmere Port on Sunday too, we salute and thank you for your tremendous support. Remember, the louder you get, the better we play! It’s a fact! Don’t forget, if you can’t follow us on the road, you can watch every game live and for free on the DAZN online platform. It’s free to create an account and you will find the links to the individual games higher up this page. Whether you’re in the gym or watching online, we’re all part of the SharkNation and together we can do great things. It’s time to #FearTheFin!

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Adam Bates