REPORT: Riders take competitive first leg by nine

Friday 28th April 2023

BBL Playoff Quarter Final 1^st Leg

B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 70 Leicester Riders 79

The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks need to turn around a nine point deficit in Leicester on Sunday afternoon if they are to progress to the semi-finals of the BBL playoffs. A typically frenetic playoff encounter played out at Ponds Forge with both sides making runs at each other. The Riders led by as many as 18 at one stage but the Sharks chipped away to halve the deficit and keep the second leg at the Morningside Arena alive on Sunday afternoon. The Sharks have overcome 15 and 5 point first leg deficits in previous playoff quarter finals so the potential of an intriguing second 40 minutes awaits.

Starting Fives

Sharks: Ramsey, Nelson, Pipkins, Ratinho, Koch.

Riders: Loving, Whelan, Love, Jackson, Nelson-Henry.

Key Moments

The Sharks threw the first punch. A 7-2 opening on Jalon Pipkins contested three was just the start the home side needed but things unravelled somewhat afterwards. Leicester fought back with a 2-15 streak that included a pair of triples from danger man Marc Loving. The Sharks reply came from Marcus Delpeche. His spin in the paint took him to the hoop successfully and then he backed down Jubril Adekoya to make it 15-24. Unfortunately his third foul before the quarter was out proved to be a blow to the Sharks and it was the Riders’ Kimbal Mackenzie who saw his side to a 17-28 lead after ten minutes play.

Leicester continued to build their lead. Carrington Love gave the visitors their biggest advantage of the game at 25-43 before the Sharks hit back solidly to end the half. Jalon Pipkins dunk along the baseline began the rally, closely followed a flying putback from Sa’eed Nelson after Rodney Glasgow’s shot. The Riders called for time to no avail as Kipper Nichols and Nelson once more closed the gap to ten at 33-43 by half time.

The Sharks revival continued after the break. A Rodney Glasgow basket in transition preceded an exquisite fake and score and a 17-2 run came to an end on a successful and-one play from Pipkins with the score at 42-45. Again Leicester pulled away. The foul count grew as Devearl Ramsey and the Riders’ Zach Jackson picked up their third each and the obvious frustrations of Sharks coach Atiba Lyons came to the fore when he received a technical that saw Kimbal Mackenzie end the third period from the line with the score at 49-62.

Six Bennett Koch points in the final stanza were key to the Sharks keeping the final deficit under double digits. The mid-point of the quarter saw Rodney Glasgow make the and-one at 62-71 before the stealthy Zach Jackson hit a trey to make it 64-75. Devearl Ramsey connected on a pull-up jump shot and followed that with two from the line inside the final minute. The Riders drew a final foul however – Adekoya’s pair from the stripe extending the lead to 70-79 after the opening forty minutes.

MVP

The Sharks held the deficit to the lowest of any of the first leg ties to keep their hopes of progress alive. Three Sharks contributed double figure returns in the search for valuable points. Sa’eed Nelson added 11 along with 3 rebounds and 3 assists, finding greater success inside rather than from distance. Jalon Pipkins posted 13 but also hit the boards aggressively 8 times as well dishing out 6 assists and making 1 steal and a blocked shot. The MVP was the newly-appointed Coaches Player of the Year. Bennett Koch continued from that midweek honour by making 7 of 8 shots on his way to 17 points with 5 rebounds and an assist.

Post Game Interview

Bennett Koch spoke of the need to focus on defence and getting into the offensive flow in order to tackle the Riders on Sunday.

Next game

Leicester Riders v B. Braun Sheffield Sharks, Sunday April 30^th 2023, Morningside Arena, 5.15pm Tip Off.

Image

Adam Bates