Sunday 29th March 2026
Super League Basketball Championship
B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 99 Surrey 89ers 96 (1OT)
The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks banished their Surrey bogey by claiming a thrilling first win of the season against the Guildford-based side. An athletic finish by eventual MVP Nick Kern Jr sent the game into overtime at 86-86 and despite the Niners going ahead by four points, the Sharks fought their way to a dramatic 99-96 success. Kern’s 29 points was the highest amongst all suited, although there were eye-catching displays from Fahro Alihodzic, Dirk Williams and Prentiss Nixon as well. The Sharks maintain their fourth position in the SLB Championship table with seven games of regular season remaining and the hunt for playoff seedings at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
Starting Fives
Sharks: Williams, Chatman III, Ratinho, Kern Jr, Alihodzic.
89ers: Small, Polite III, Lawrence, Lily Jr, Graham.
Key Moments
Surrey, 3-0 over the Sharks for the season at the start of play, set off well and went ahead by 2-8 on Ronald Polite’s open triple. The Sharks battled back through Jordan Ratinho’s reply from the corner to make it 9-11 and with three minutes remaining in the quarter, new signing Troy D’Amico was introduced for his Sheffield debut. While Surrey kept their noses in front, the Sharks were never far away and a Dirk Williams three and a pair of Rodney Chatman III shots from the line saw the first quarter close at 20-22.
A tight affair continued as the Sharks managed to claim a two point lead by half time. Kino Lily Jr splashed a three that gave Surrey a 22-28 advantage but the Sharks finally got in front on a Ratinho layup from Fahro Alihodzic’s assist at 31-30. The gap became three on Dirk Williams’ trey at 38-35 but Surrey levelled once more through Polite at 40-40. Prentiss Nixon’s mid-ranger took the score to 44-40 but Michael Graham’s late bucket saw the sides into the locker rooms at 44-42.
The game remained close in the early stages of the third quarter but daylight opened up as Alihodzic capped a 10-1 run on Kern’s assist at 58-51. The impressive Polite brought the deficit back down to one with yet another triple at 60-59 but Nick Kern’s reverse two hander closed another tense ten minutes with the score at 69-63.
The drama didn’t end there. Kern was starting to run riot by this stage and a vicious one handed dunk from Chatman’s assist made it 79-73. The game looked far from settled as veteran Tayo Ogedengbe tied matters once more on a three at 83-83 and Surrey went back ahead on a Polite free throw at 84-86 with 19.6 seconds to play. Alihodzic missed a layup and the Niners’ Tyrin Lawrence drew a blank at the line with 9.2s to go. Kern went coast to coast for an athletic finish to make it 86-86 and the contest was destined for overtime.
Surrey claimed the traditionally game-winning first points of overtime and went up by 88-92 on a smooth stepback three from Lily. Kern levelled the game once more and an outrageously long trey from Prentiss Nixon put the Sharks ahead at 95-94. With Surrey also joining the Sharks in the bonus, Nixon and Williams held their nerve from the line to complete a memorable 99-96 triumph.
MVP
There were four huge performances as the Sharks claimed their first Surrey scalp of the season. Shooting a very useful 50% and with that vital big three point make, Prentiss Nixon finished with a very creditable 18 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Going one better points-wise was Dirk Williams. He made three from deep to close on 19 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Fahro Alihodzic made a serious case for the MVP award. He pulled down 7 offensive boards to end with a quality double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds that exhibited all his veteran knowledge. The actual MVP was a livewire of athleticism on his way to the game’s top score. Nick Kern Jr shot at an eye-catching 75% for his outstanding 29 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals as the Sharks put an important notch in the win column.
Next Game
B. Braun Sheffield Sharks v Leicester Riders, Friday 3rd April 2026, Canon Medical Arena, 7.30pm Tip Off.
Image
Josh Rackham
