Sharks curtail Riders unbeaten start in impressive road win

Friday 8th November 2024

Super League Basketball Championship

Leicester Riders 79 B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 82

The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks curtailed Leicester Riders unbeaten start to the season with an impressive 79-82 win on the road. Backed by a vociferous following, the Sharks held their nerve in the final 90 seconds as eventual MVP EC Matthews stringed the three point shot that took them to a memorable victory. Matthews’ 18 points was key to the win but once again it was a team affair that saw Atiba Lyons’ men to 2-1 start to the league campaign.

Starting Fives

Riders: Abercrombie, Hunter, Wright, Jackson, Thompson.

Sharks: Jeffries, Ratinho, Chatman, Clay, Groves.

Key Moments

Ethan Wright’s three point jump shot opened the scoring for the evening and Leicester went up by 10-8 as Riley Abercrombie followed suit. A reply out of the corner by Jordan Ratinho put the Sharks into the lead, confirmed by Jamell Anderson at 14-16. A trip to the line for Duke Shelton saw the Riders shade a close first quarter as an EC Matthews trey ended the opening 10 minutes at 22-21.

The Sharks have shown that they are capable of scoring big this season and a 24-28 second period demonstrated that succinctly. Rodney Glasgow’s three from the top of the key made it 28-29 but Leicester kept in touch as Abercrombie’s stepback triple took the score to 38-43. The same player found success from distance once again as the gap became a single point but a pair of Rodney Chatman mid-rangers saw the Sharks with a 46-49 half time lead.

A huge Jacob Groves three opened the third quarter scoring but Abercrombie’s fourth make of the night took the hosts out to a 62-57 advantage. Drake Jeffries’ off balance jump shot showed that the Sharks were refusing to go away and a pair of Donovan Clay freebies set up an intriguing final period at 65-61.

Connor Washington’s pull-up three gave Leicester a ten point differential but a 0-16 run, ended by Jordan Ratinho’s trey shot his side back in front by 71-77. The Riders weren’t finished as the ever-impressive Zach Jackson made back-to-back threes and tipped in to level the game at 79-79. The Sharks weren’t fazed however as the equally-impressive EC Matthews calmly stringed the three that gave his side a deserved 79-82 victory.

MVP

Four double-figure outings caught the eye as the Sharks moved to 2-1 for the league season. Prentiss Nixon (11) and Jacob Groves (13) made crucial shots at key moments in a solid team-based victory. Rodney Chatman’s statline of 14 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 1 block showed how important he is to the Sharks rotation but the MVP award went the way of EC Matthews. The guard, whose performances seem to get better week on week, made 4 of his 7 three point shots and went 6 of 10 overall to finish with 18 points, 5 rebounds and a steal to take the honours.

Next Game

Cheshire Phoenix v B. Braun Sheffield Sharks, Sunday 10th November 2024, Cheshire Oaks Arena, Super League Basketball Championship, 5.30pm tip off

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Adam Bates