PREVIEW: Thrilling double-header tips off 2022!
BBL Championship
Cross everything! 2022 gets underway for the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks on Sunday with a terrific double-header of high quality basketball. Following the L Lynch Trophy Final between Derby Trailblazers and Team Newcastle University at 12pm, Atiba and the guys finally return to the Ponds Forge hardwood with a sizzling clash against the Leicester Riders at 4pm. And best of all, you get both games for the price of one!
Sunday – Sharks v Riders – Ponds Forge – 4.00pm
Ones To Watch
Geno Crandall – The reigning league MVP continues to be as influential as ever for the Riders and the stats bear this out – 18 points per game, 4.7 rebounds and 7 assists currently and it would be foolish not to bank on those numbers going even higher!
Marc Loving – Versatile forward who is as happy playing above the rim as he is shooting the three ball. 14 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists in Leicester’s last league win against Plymouth.
Mo Walker – Man-mountain of a centre, who looks to be getting back to his best after an unfortunate spell of injury. Tends to save his better performances for games against the Sharks and currently putting up 10.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
Darien Nelson-Henry – Club captain who has also recently returned from injury to particularly good effect in the 106-60 win over Plymouth, where he top-scored with 22 points as well as pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out 5 assists.
Last Meeting
November 28th 2021 – B. Braun Sheffield Sharks (Anderson 14 Nichols 11 Ratinho 11) 72 Leicester Riders (Loving 23 Crandall 20 Walker 17) 80
Shark Bites
Sunday’s clash between the Sharks and the Riders is the 128th in all competitions with the Sharks proving victorious on 70 occasions, the Riders 56 and one draw in the 2016 Trophy semi-final.
In Championship clashes, the Sharks lead by 49-39, although the Riders have won 26 of the last 29 dating back to November 2011.
The Riders have won in Sheffield on nine of their last ten visits in all competitions – the Sharks solitary win coming in the group stages of the BBL Cup in November 2019.
While the Riders have twice achieved winning sequences of nine games against the Sharks, they are some way short of the eighteen game winning run managed by the Sharks from October 2002 until March 2005!
SharkNation
Not one but two thrilling games of basketball to tip-off 2022 for the price of one! First up is the L Lynch Trophy Final between Derby Trailblazers and Team Newcastle University at 12 noon. Check out Basketball England’s preview for the game here: https://www.basketballengland.co.uk/news/l-lynch-trophy-final-derby-trailblazers-vs-team-newcastle-university-preview-live-stream-tickets/
Then, at 4pm, your B. Braun Sharks take on the reigning champions and current league leaders – the Leicester Riders. One ticket (see the link at the top of the page) gets you into both games! Please check our social media for all the latest information nearer game time regarding how to enjoy the game safely. 2022 might be the Chinese Year of the Tiger but we’re determined to make it the Year of the Shark! Fear The Fin!
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Adam Bates
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