Sharks in Saturday night action as Playoff race goes to the wire

British Basketball League Regular Season

The race for fourth place goes down to the final weekend of regular season. The B. Braun Sheffield Sharks require victory over the Plymouth City Patriots in the last game of the league campaign and must then look at results elsewhere to see if they get the priority seeding for the playoffs. Fifth-placed Leicester play Manchester and Surrey over the weekend and sixth-placed Newcastle take on Cheshire and Manchester. The Sharks hold the head-to-head over Newcastle but not over Leicester so it would appear that at least one Riders defeat might be a requirement for that coveted fourth position. Whatever happens, it’s down-to-the-wire stuff and a thrilling few days of basketball awaits!

Saturday – Sharks v Patriots – Canon Medical Arena – 8.00pm

Tickets – Fanbase | Schedule (fanbaseclub.com)

Ones To Watch

Cameron Copeland – One of the five Plymouth players who played all 40 minutes against Caledonia last Sunday. Finished with 11 / 5 which is comparable to his season average of 12.5 points and 3.4 boards.

Spencer Levi – Had the most eye-catching numbers of the Patriots’ five up in Scotland. Finished with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists for an index of 25 as his side battled gamely in a 96-81 defeat. Averages 7.3 / 7.8 over the season.

Elvisi Dusha – The Albanian international upped his scoring rate against the Gladiators, beating his season average of 4.9 by some margin to finish with 19 on the night. Always assist-friendly, he dished out 6 dimes as Plymouth gained some credit in adversity.

TJ Atwood – Possibly the standout of Plymouth’s season, who led their scoring at Playsport with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists on 8 of 11 shooting. Splendid all-round game that sees him garner 16.3 points, 7.1 boards and 3.1 assists over the campaign.

Last Meeting

February 29th 2024 – B. Braun Sheffield Sharks (Green 20 Pipkins 13 Koch 12) 97 Plymouth City Patriots (Atwood 18 Copeland 13 Levi 8) 60

Shark Bites

A win on Saturday for the Sharks against Plymouth City Patriots would see them end the regular season with a record of 19 wins and 17 losses. This would be the 26th time in their 30 seasons in the British Basketball League where they have ended the campaign with a winning record.

The Sharks have won 5 of their last 6 home games against Plymouth. In all competitions, their home record against Plymouth is 26 wins and 9 losses. A total of 61 regular season games against the team from Devon have brought 40 wins.

Saturday will be the 4th time in 10 years that the last regular season game of the season is against Plymouth. Sharks won at Plymouth 81-71 on 20th April 2014, lost at Plymouth 76-84 on 23rd April 2017 and won in Plymouth 98-82 on 29th April 2018.

Sharks overall record on the last day of regular season is 15 wins and 14 losses. At home it is 7 wins and 6 defeats.

SharkNation

The curtain comes down on the 2023-24 regular season this Saturday night as your B. Braun Sheffield Sharks take on Plymouth City Patriots. The Sharks need that win to have a chance of securing the fourth place finish that potentially gives two home games in the playoffs at the quarter final stage. So we need our SharkNation more than ever! Head to the ticket link at the top of the page and be prepared to shout yourself hoarse to get us over the line at Fortress CMA! The playoffs are coming and we need you with us all the way. The Sharks, The Tank, Our Fans and a whole heap of noise – together we are UNBEATABLE! It’s time to #FearTheFin.

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Adam Bates