Friday 12th December 2025
Super League Basketball Trophy
Newcastle Eagles 94 B. Braun Sheffield Sharks 89
Newcastle Eagles ensured their qualification from the north SLB Trophy group consisting of themselves, the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks and Caledonia Gladiators by taking a 94-89 win in a pulsating contest at the Vertu Motors Arena. The Eagles topped the group with the victory and head into the semi finals despite running a seven man roster for much of the contest. The Sharks made it a single point game down the stretch but were unable to keep the momentum going as their hosts saw out the contest from the line. Nick Kern Jr led the Sharks with 23 points but his side now need a sizeable win over Caledonia on Sunday if they are to progress by virtue of being the best runner-up.
Starting Fives
Eagles: Taylor, Kande, Jack, Long, Kanwei.
Sharks: Williams, Chatman, James, Ratinho, DeLoach.
Key Moments
A scintillating first quarter saw the Sharks take a four point lead. Dirk Williams triple fired the Sharks ahead by 7-9 but that was quickly tempered by a reply from Sauveur Kande. The sides traded baskets throughout the mid-point of the quarter until six quick points from Nick Kern Jr saw the Sharks up by 18-24. Newcastle wrestled back the advantage through back-to-back triples from Deion Hammond but an outrageous half court buzzer-beater from Mervin James saw the Sharks in front by 29-33.
Things looked ominous for the hosts as veteran forward Darius Defoe left the court with what looked like a head injury, leaving them with just seven fit men. The Sharks capitalised through Jalen DeLoach’s turnaround jump shot and a nice and-one play from Kern to make the score 35-42 but the Eagles showed plenty of belligerence. A deep three from Ray’sean Taylor kept them in touch and they restored a one point lead through Mitch Clarke at 43-42. The returning Prentiss Nixon’s drive into paint looked to put the Sharks in charge before half time but a technical foul call on the same player saw Hammond close the half with the score at 46-49.
Tempo seemed to desert the Sharks in the second half as Newcastle went on to claim the win. Another Hammond corner triple tied the contest at 55-55 and by the time he had claimed 2 more from the charity stripe, the Eagles had been on a 10-0 run and were ahead by 62-55. Rodney Chatman III did his utmost to get the Sharks back on track. His three from Nixon’s behind the back pass was followed by another out of the corner as the lead was restored at 64-66 but further trades saw the period end at 68-68.
A bizarre passage of play saw Newcastle’s Maceo Jack bank a triple off the corner of the glass, followed by the ball going through the hoop off Sheffield’s Dirk Williams as the Eagles inched ahead by 78-74. They completed another 9-0 streak from Taylor’s fadeaway but a thunderous throw-down by Nick Kern kept the Sharks in touch at 86-83. The game was still anyones as Prentiss Nixon converted to make it 90-89 inside the final 20 seconds before Taylor added two more from the line for the hosts. Out of the timeout, the Sharks had good looks through William Lee and Rodney Chatman for game-tying threes but with the ball falling short, it was left to Clarke to see the Tynesiders home to a 94-89 victory.
MVP
Jalen DeLoach was his usual aggressive self off the glass ending with a very useful 10 point, 7 rebound return. Likewise, Mervin James benefitted from a starting berth to also flirt with a double-double at 10 points and 8 boards. Rodney Chatman III hit some sublime finishes, particularly in the second half in a bid to see the Sharks over the line but his 19 point, 6 assist evening was in vain. Leading the Sharks charge for victory was Nick Kern Jr. His 23 points came on 9 of 11 shooting and he too was on double-double watch for an impressive 9 rebounds. The ideal scenario now sees the Sharks hoping for a sizeable win over Caledonia on Sunday allied with victories for Leicester and London to put them in the mix for a potential best runners-up slot and passage to the semi-finals.
Next Game
B. Braun Sheffield Sharks v Caledonia Gladiators, Sunday 14th December 2025, Canon Medical Arena, 4.00pm Tip Off.
Image
Adam Bates
