League Championship gets underway this weekend for the Sharks
Super League Basketball Championship
The bread and butter of the Super League Basketball Championship begins this weekend for the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks. Friday night sees a visit to the Copperbox Arena to take on the London Lions, which is then followed up by the visit of Bristol Flyers to the Canon Medical Arena on Sunday afternoon. After the early season Trophy competition, all eyes are now on the 32 game long-haul of the league and two opponents the Sharks have yet to face in competitive play this season.
Friday – Lions v Sharks – Copperbox Arena – 7.30pm
Watch - https://www.dazn.com/en-GB/schedule
Ones to Watch
Aaryn Rai – Former Cheshire standout who has relocated to the capital for the 2024-25 season. Often earns the moniker of ‘point forward’ for his all-round game, which brought him 15.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists throughout the Trophy group stage.
Ovie Soko – The reality TV star came back out of retirement to re-sign for the Lions and is once again demonstrating why he has GB honours to his name. Made 14 points on 6 of 9 shooting for the Lions in last week’s 76-62 defeat at Leicester.
Jaiden Delaire – Has been a revelation for London in the Trophy so far. Posted outstanding numbers of 21 points with 8.6 rebounds for the season to date but was a little below those stats in Leicester with 11 / 5.
Jordan Taylor – Handed the Lions captaincy as one of the few players to return to London following their stellar season the year before. Currently rewarding the men from the Copperbox with 11.8 points per game, 2.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists.
Last Meeting
February 11th 2024 – B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 79 London Lions 89
Sunday – Sharks v Flyers – Canon Medical Arena – 4.00pm
Tickets - https://app.fanbaseclub.com/Fan/Fixtures?fanStoreType=Fixtures&clubId=216
Ones to Watch
Keddy Johnson – Top-scored for the Flyers in an almighty shootout with Leicester Riders last time out. Posted 25 points with 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals but couldn’t prevent a 4 point overtime loss.
Demond Robinson – Big double-double of 21 points and 13 boards for the forward against the Riders, which also contained a huge 8 offensive rebounds. Points came on 61% shooting.
Evan Walshe – Brit product who has already starred for Leicester and Manchester in his career. Very effective off the bench where his energy brought 16 points against Leicester and he was a perfect 6 of 6 from the line.
Trey Tennyson – New signing to Bristol who has already caught the eye from the guard positions. Averaged 17.7 points throughout the Trophy group stage and bettered that to record 18 as the Flyers were edged out in OT by 101-105 against the Riders.
Last Meeting
December 22nd 2023 – B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 76 Bristol Flyers 66
Shark Bites
While Jaiden Delaire catches the eye in terms of points per game for London, he is the only Lion in the top ten. The Sharks can boast both Rodney Chatman (18.0 ppg) and Prentiss Nixon (16.3 ppg) in the list of high-scorers.
When it comes to dishing the dimes, the Sharks don’t fair so badly either. Prentiss Nixon is third on the list with 5.5 assists per game, ahead of London’s Jordan Taylor (4.5) and Michael Brisker (4.0).
He’s got lightning fast hands as Rodney Chatman is proving with his 2.5 steals per game, which puts him top of the chart for the season so far, ahead of Bristol’s Keddy Johnson and Jared Sherfield who both weigh in with 1.7.
Don’t send Rodney Chatman to the line! The Sharks guard has just one miss to his name so far this season for an incredible average of 96.3% !! Fellow guard Prentiss Nixon isn’t that far behind either with a more-than-credible 87.2%.
SharkNation
The season begins here! After some early promise from the Sharks, the long haul of the league begins this weekend and we’re looking to hit the ground running. You can catch Friday’s opener in the capital live and for free on DAZN (link at the top of the page) and it goes without saying that all your vocal support is required on Sunday when Bristol Flyers come to town. The SharkNation has been getting louder and louder each week so in a bid to take the roof off, hit the ticket link higher up the page and settle in for another thrilling afternoon of basketball. You want some early fireworks? Well the Canon Medical Arena is where you will find them! It’s time to #FearTheFin.
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Adam Bates