Sharks head to in-form Leicester on Friday

British Basketball League Regular Season

The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks make the short journey down to the newly-named Mattioli Arena on Friday evening to take on the fourth-placed Leicester Riders. Rob Paternostro’s side are climbing the standings with four wins in their last five games, going through the hundred point barrier on three of those occasions. The Sharks are looking upwards from their current sixth position, buoyed by a much-improved performance last Sunday against runaway leaders London Lions and will need a similar energy if they are to knock the Leicester bandwagon off course.

Friday – Riders v Sharks – Mattioli Arena – 7.45pm

Watch – Championship Week 19: Leicester vs Sheffield - LIVE - YouTube

Ones To Watch

Teddy Allen – A key factor in the turnaround of the Riders season. Led all scorers with 28 as Leicester claimed a tough away win at Caledonia and averages 23.3 points per game since his stunning arrival in the Midlands.

Kimbal Mackenzie – The Riders captain and GB international has picked up the mantle at point guard and his leading his side from the front. Contributed 21 points in the 93-97 road win over the Gladiators and added a further 5 assists to go with his 4.5 per game average.

Jaren Holmes – Packed his statline against Caledonia in an all-action display. His 15 points came with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and a blocked shot from 30 minutes of court-time which compared favourably with his 13.2 point, 4 rebound, 2.6 assist season stats.

Miryne Thomas – Has already scored big against the Sharks this season with 22 in their last encounter. A little below his season averages in Scotland last week but normally contributes 12.2 points per game, 6.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

Last Meeting

December 30th 2024 – Leicester Riders (Allen 25 Thomas 22 Holmes 17) 103 B. Braun Sheffield Sharks (Nixon 17 Glasgow 15 Nichols 11) 75

Shark Bites

The seven games played by the Sharks in 2024 have seen a Sharks end of game score in the seventies every time. The 79 recorded against London on Sunday is the highest score since making 86 to beat Manchester on 31st December 2023.

The Sharks double loss to London recently means the Lions have won the regular season head to head by 4-0. This has only happened to the Sharks four times previously – 2004-5 to both Chester and Brighton, 2003-4 also to also to Brighton and 1999-00 against Manchester. The Sharks beat all four of those teams in another competition.

In the Sharks 30 season history, they have achieved a 4-0 regular season sweep 26 times!

Last Sunday against London was the first game in 2024 where the Sharks scored more 3s (9) than their opponents (6). The previous 6 games saw the Sharks record 24 triples compared to 59 by their opponents. In those same 6 games, the Sharks made 144 two pointers whilst only conceding 116 two point shots.

SharkNation

We’re aware that a band of our supporters are heading down to Leicester on Friday to cheer the guys on – thank you for your wonderful support! If you can’t make it in person, hit the link at the top of the page where you can follow the stream of the game live and for free. Our SharkNation were wonderful in packing the gym last Sunday against the Lions and your presence was noted by the guys and the Hatters, who took a win in the double-header. We hope you can join us again on Thursday 29th February when Plymouth City Patriots take the ‘leap’ up north as our next home opponents. Go to Fanbase | Schedule (fanbaseclub.com) where you can secure your seat for this very important clash. It’s the time of year where every win is vital so let’s make some noise and protect our fortress. Together we can be UNBEATABLE! #FearTheFin

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Adam Bates