EBL DIVISION 2: Nottingham Knights (28, 47, 61) 81 West Herts Warriors (13, 28, 41) 62 Nottingham were taking no chances as they took early control of the game. Consecutive "3"s from Bud Johnson put the Knights 6-2 ahead, and Johnson and Sam Attah both hit a "trey" in a 15-4 run towards the end of the half that put them in a commanding position at 23-8, and they finished the quarter leading by 15. Nottingham's excellent defence, and domination of the key, was causing frequent missed shots and turnovers by the Warriors, and the Knights edged away to a 19 point cushion by the end of the half. By this stage West Herts were playing with more composure, and a "3" from the impressive Tayo Odulaja, to open the third, sparked a 5-point spurt that threatened to bring them back into contention, at 47-33. Nottingham, though, were not going to let the game out of their grasp, and Odulaja was the only Warriors player who gave them consistent problems, on his way to a game-high 23. Knights took control again to take a 20 point lead into the fourth, and win by 19 at a canter. Nottingham thus take their place in Division 1 next season with the Division 2 League, Cup and Championship "treble" safely in the record books. Knights: Attah 18; Johnston 17; Lawson 14; Passmore 10; Davis 8; Malik 7; Omope 3; Dube 2; Samuels 2; Middleton; Lauder; T Griffith (dnp) Warriors: Odulaja 23; ter Steege 10; C Tye 6; Abrook 6; Patterson 5; Komba 4; Munro 4; Rose 2; J Tye 2; Dyke; Mackay. EBL DIVISION 1 Women: Rhondda Rebels (20, 36, 52) 64 Sheffield Hatters (23, 43, 51) 58 Rhondda Rebels took the Women's Championship (and the "treble") in a thrilling Final which was one of the most intense and physical that I can remember. Rhondda took the early initiative, with a 7-0 spurt, including a Nina Pezdirec "3" from the corner, to lead 7-2, but Hatters soon settled into their defensive duties, while beginning to find gaps in Rebels' ranks, and they moved from 3-9 down to 14-10 ahead, finishing the quarter with a 3 point cushion. Latoya Kincaid levelled the game with the first two scores of the second, but then Katie Crowley and Kristy Lavin put together an unanswered 10 point spurt for the Hatters to give them a 33-23 lead. Sheffield were looking the more composed, even though Rhondda hit the next three points, suddenly they began to lose their composure. Gottardi took a steal, and fed Robert on the fast break; she scored, and appeared to be floored by Lavin, who received an Unsportsmanlike Foul for her pains. Robert missed both attempts from the stripe, but Kagie was then called for a Technical Foul (her fourth personal), and Gottardi made no mistake from the line. From ten ahead, Hatters' lead was down to three, and it was soon down to one, as Missy Lender drove the baseline for 33-32. Katie Crowley restored Hatters' momentum with a 23-second "trey",and they moved away again to lead 43-36 at the end of the half, but their frailty had already been exposed. Sheffield continued to pull away in the first half of the third, but at 12 points down Robert raised her game again, contributing seven points as Rhondda hit the last 11 of the quarter, while Lavin and Ann Janieson-Shaw missed a pair of free throws apiece, and the Rebels trailed by just a single point. Sheffield were visibly tiring as the game entered the fourth quarter, and when Szilvia Horinka turned her ankle in the first minute they found themselves with fewer players to rotate. With both teams struggling from the line, and Hatters' increasingly weary legs slowing their movement, the scoring rate dropped dramatically, and by the seventh minute the score in the quarter was 7-6 to Rhondda ... level at 58 all. With 2:04 to play Gottardi was away on a fast break when she was chopped by Leandra Little as she attacked the basket, and an Unsportsmanlike Foul was awarded. Gottardi spurned both free shots, but from the inbounds an excellent spin move by Robert gave Rhondda the lead, 60-58 - with what turned out the be the last field goal of the game. Entering the final minute the tension of the finale was encapsulated in a series of moves - LaToya Kincaid was called for a 3-second violation ... Gottardi stole the ball back ... and Rhonda promptly committed a back-court violation ... only for Sheffield to also turn the ball over! With less than 30 seconds on the clock Kagie committed her fifth foul, and this time Gottardi hit one of her shots for a 3 point lead. Claire Matham was fouled, to give the Hatters the chance to reduce the margin, but she, too, missed both attempts from the line, and Sheffield found themselves forced to foul to stop the clock. When Robert was fouled by Lavin she this time hit one of two, to leave the Hatters needing to score twice, and when Matham's 3-point attempt failed to find its mark the inevitable foul that followed put Gottardi on the line again, and this time the Italian guard made no mistake as she iced the win with 2 of 2 from the stripe. Geraldine Robert finished the game with a quadruple double of 21 points, 14 rebounds, 10 steals ... and thirteen turnovers! Rebels: Robert 21 (+14 reb.+10 st.); Lender 16; Gottardi 14; Kincaid 10; Pezdirec 3; Zekite; Pearce (dnp); Hughes (dnp); Lewis (dnp); Abramova (dnp); Gooch (dnp); Staley (dnp). Hatters: Lavin 17; Crowley 16; Kagie 9; Maytham 4; Hutchinson 4; Horinka 4; Jamieson-Shaw 2; Little; Underwood (dnp); Hay (dnp); Morton (dnp); Ward (dnp). EBL DIVISION 1: City of Sheffield Arrows (28, 48, 67) 74 Reading Rockets (20, 46, 64) 71 Todd Cauthorn won the Championship for the City of Sheffield Arrows with a 3-pointer 1.6 seconds from time, after a see-saw contest which ended with a 7-all final quarter. A great first quarter from Reading saw them pull away from 9-11 behind to lead 26-15, and though Arrows pulled five back (2/2 from Mike Payne and a Todd Cauthorn "3"), EJ Harrison ensured an eight point margin at the break, with an off-balance running jump-shot that beat the buzzer. The Rockets continued to call the tune, as they led 42-32 in the second, before Arrows responded with a 22-4 run across the half-time break. Garnet Gayle, who believes that Reading are weaker since they signed Steve Parillon, as he's easier to guard, practised what he preached as he forced him into missed shots, as his side appeared to have put themselves in the driving seat, 54-46, and 57-48 after a Ryan Patton "trey". Rockets, though, showed their resilience, as Lee McCarthy (2/2) and EJ Harrison (4/4) pulled them right back into contention, and Harrison was instrumental as they pulled level at 62-all. On the next offence, Cauthorn picked up his fourth foul, with a charging call, and he was lucky to stay in the game, as he bore down on referee Roger Harrison, with a look of fury on his face, and then appeared to change his mind, and chest-barged Ted Smith to the floor instead! Smith soon had his revenge, as he drove in for the next two points, to put the Rockets ahead for the first time in the quarter, but he missed the bonus point following a foul, and Ryan Patton hit a "3" as the shot-clock expired, and Jamie Davidson sank the last basket of the quarter, leaving the Arrows leading by three. If the game had been taut before it became even more so in the final quarter, as a full 2:40 had elapsed before the first score, when a Patton drive and two handed lob extended the Arrows' lead. As the defences remained on top, Adam Kelly and Harrison edged the Rockets back to within a point, 69-68, and Adrian Anderson's tip-in took the lead to three again, with just over four minutes to play. For the next two minutes the game remained scoreless, as both sides strove for mastery (and Cauthorn spurned two from the stripe), but then Smith (1 of 2) and Harrison (drive and finger-roll) left them level at 71-all with 1:16 to play. So it remained, with overtime looking increasingly likely, with Rockets shading the period 7-4, until Cauthorn popped up with the "3" that broke Reading's hearts. Arrows: Cauthorn 23; Patton 18; Davidson 9; Payne 8; Anderson 7; Gayle 6; Renton 2; Richards 1; Hackett (dnp); Olusoga (dnp); Law (dnp); Marsh (dnp) Rockets: Harrison 27; Parillon 8; Seaman 8; Wellings 6; Smith 5; Gardner 5; Kelly 4; Cook 4; McCarty 2; Carlton 2; Clark (dnp); Ashwin (dnp); |
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