Sunday 16th November 2025
Super League Basketball Championship
B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 98 Manchester Basketball 79
The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks ascended to second in the Super League Basketball table with a superlative 98-79 victory over Manchester Basketball. The Sharks celebrated their heritage game with a vast array of players from the club’s origins, who witnessed an MVP performance from Rodney Chatman III, leading all scorers with 35 points on the night. The Sharks now-familiar eight man rotation has won the last four games on the bounce to keep the pressure on London Lions at the top of the standings with the club moving into a nineteen day break before their next fixture against Newcastle Eagles.
Starting Fives
Sharks: Williams, Glasgow, Chatman, Ratinho, Lee.
Manchester: Smith, Jones, Osabuohien, Cleary, Henry.
Key Moments
A starting five berth for William Lee proved to be highly effective as his alleyoop finish set the tone for an excellent display. Lee connected from the wing for three to make it 10-6 and that was followed by a looping effort from Rodney Chatman III that had the same effect. Chatman assisted to Jordan Ratinho to cap a 10-0 run at 15-6 as the Sharks never looked back. Manchester reasserted themselves with a 4-12 burst that was ended by a pair of Jordan Johnson free throws and even with a Tim Adetukasi bucket, the Sharks remained ahead by 22-20 after ten minutes of play.
The Sharks were in irresistible mood with a 31-16 second quarter. Manchester kept it tight at 28-26 on Max Jones’ triple but Rodney Glasgow Jr wrong footed his man for three, followed by back to back Dirk Williams’ treys as a 15-0 streak took the score out to 45-28. PJ Smith found success from deep on an inbound pass but it was all about the Sharks as another Chatman triple and a Nick Kern Jr drive into the paint saw the half come to a close at 53-36.
That lead became 20 early in the second half. Dirk Williams and Jordan Ratinho added to the Sharks nine three point scores to make it 59-39 and another contested William Lee shot soared through the net at 65-49. Manchester’s Smith poured in his 11th point of the quarter as the Lancastrians chipped away at the advantage, taking it down to just 9 on Johnson’s and-one play. Another Williams trey saw the third period close at 74-62 however.
Fourteen final stanza points from Rodney Chatman sealed another tremendous victory for the Sharks. Adetukasi brought the lead down to a nervy 8 at 78-70 but the nerves were soon allayed as Chatman casually swished another couple of threes. Adetukasi repeated his earlier shot but again it was all about the Sharks talisman point guard. Six points in the final two minutes wrapped up the game and despite a successful and-one from Johnson, it was the Sharks who could be delighted with an impressive 98-79 success.
MVP
The Sharks finished with 15 completed three pointers after being 9 of 11 at the half time interval. On triple-double watch was Nick Kern Jr. He finished with 7 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists as again teamwork proved to be the key to the eight man roster’s success. Starting the game certainly suited William Lee, who responded with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal as well as having a perfect 100% shooting night. Dirk Williams was as effective as ever, missing only three times in his 28 minutes on court for a fine 20 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots. The MVP was Rodney Chatman III. His eye-popping 35 points included 6 successful makes from deep as well as 7 boards and very helpful 6 assists to cap a fine night for the guard and his team as a whole.
Next Game
B. Braun Sheffield Sharks v Newcastle Eagles, Friday 5th December 2025, Canon Medical Arena, 7.30pm Tip Off.
Image
Adam Bates
