The Everton Tigers and Worcester Wolves meet for the first time in the BBL Championship on Friday night on Merseyside.

Everton coach Henry Mooney will spend this week preparing for the game as he looks to extend their winning run to three games, “We’re getting their game at Scottish Rocks videoed, so we’ll have a good look at them this week. They’ve improved recently, and James Life looks to be a good signing. They’ve also added Douaine Anderson who is a decent athlete, so they won’t be a pushover.

“We can beat anyone on our day, and we’ve won the last two, so we want to go on a run.  We’ve only got one away game in December, so I think we could be up there by Christmas.  I still think we could finish in the top four, and if we can start winning regularly that will give us confidence.

“We cut Mohammed Woni last week, and we’ve made an offer to a player who played with Tony Robertson. He’s a good player, and an athletic rebounder, so if we can get him, I think we’ve got a good chance of really making a run. He’s played in Finland, but he’s back in the States at the moment, and we’re waiting on his answer.”

Tigers had arguably the biggest win of their short history on Friday when they defeated the Marshall MK Lions, and Mooney was a delighted man following the victory, “We played really well, and deserved the win. They had their strongest team out, but it was a real team effort. Tony Miller was outstanding at the point, but we played an eight man rotation, and they all contributed.”

Although he hasn’t seen the Tigers in action, Wolves’ coach Skouson Harker knows his team will face a tough test on Merseyside, “I haven’t seen them, but I know a few of the players from when I was at Birmingham.  Delme Herriman and John Simpson are both good players, and obviously Calvin Davis had a great career at the Jets.  They are a lot better than their record suggests, so it’s going to be a tough game but we need to start winning games.”

Wolves travelled to Scotland to face the Rocks on Sunday, and fell to their third defeat of the campaign against Sterling Davis’ team, but coach Harker wasn’t too despondent, “We weren’t too bad in the first half, but they outclassed us in the second half. We were a bit undermanned as I had a leg injury, but that’s not all negative. I coached the game, and watching it told me some things we need to work on. I should be back for the weekend.”

Everton Tigers will be looking for quick revenge when they host an in-form Marshall MK Lions side on Friday evening. The two sides met at Bletchley a fortnight ago, and the Lions continued their good streak, which has now extended to six straight wins, with a 94-90 victory.

Everton had a mixed weekend last week, losing heavily at home against the SAMG Verve Scottish Rocks before winning at Team Birmingham Panthers, leaving coach Henry Mooney in a reflective mood, “We were very poor on Friday, we didn’t play well at all. They are a very good basketball team, and we showed when we took them to overtime up there that we could compete. But we didn’t play enough defence, there was no rotation, and it was probably the worst we’ve played. They played well, they made their shots and we deserved the beating they handed to us.

“We bounced back at Birmingham. We let them come back at us after starting well, but we stepped up in the fourth quarter, and with Tony Robertson hitting four threes, we won the game comfortably.”

“We’re back in touch now, and we’ve got a lot of home games before Christmas. If we can beat Milton Keynes, I think it will give us the spark to move up the table. We need to stop Yorick getting on a run, I think he had 18 in one period against us. He doesn’t start for them, but he brings so much energy off the bench. I was also very impressed with Peter Heizer, he does what he does very well and very quietly. They’ve got a lot of experience, especially if Robert Youngblood’s back, but I think we’re looking forward to the rematch. We led for most of the game down there, and if we turn up ready to play, we can win the game.”

Lions’ coach Vince Macauley is hoping to have a full squad to pick from, and is excited about the weekend’s games as he answered one of Mooney’s questions, “Robert Youngblood is ready to come back, and we’re pleased to have him back in the team.  Kevin Griffin’s father’s heart operation went well, so he’ll return, and hopefully we’ll have 12 players available. Only Dru Spinks and Peter Heizer played more than 40 minutes last week, which is terrific, and I hope we can use our strength in depth in weekends where we have two games.

“Everton are going to be tough. They played really well in the first half at Bletchley, but we did well to shut them down in the second half. I wouldn’t want to have to repeat our comeback at Leicester too many times away from home. We know their strengths and what they’ve got in store, and we’re expecting a battle.

“Tony Robertson is the player we need to key in on. Chris Haslam didn’t have a good game against us, but I’d expect more from him on Friday. Although it was against us, I was really pleased to see John Simpson play so well, he has a lot to offer the BBL. It’s our first trip to Everton, and we’re excited to go there.

Courtesy of an interesting twist in the fixture schedule, the Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders and Poujoulat Heat Guildford meet for the first of two games in as many days on Saturday.

While Sunday’s game sees a place in the BBL Cup semi-finals at stake, Saturday’s action at the John Sandford Centre will see the teams battle it out for BBL Championship points.

Riders signed former Guildford pair Chad McKnight and Roderick Wellington during the summer, and with their friend and former team-mate Brian Dux still in intensive care following a car accident on November 10, Riders’ coach Martin Ford knows that the games will be emotional for two of his most important players, “It was always going to be a difficult game for Chad and Roderick, and due to the situation with Brian it’ll be even worse. The game at Guildford will probably mean more to them than the Saturday league game.”

The Guildford side have added two-time BBL Championship winning point guard Perry Lawson to their line-up, and Mike Martin is pleased to have his former England team-mate alongside him, “He started the season with Sheffield, but he hasn’t played since, and he needs to find where he fits in with the team. He’ll find his strengths, and he did a decent job against Plymouth. I doubt he was 100 percent happy with his performance, but basketball players are very hard on themselves.  It’s going to be a long season for us, and Perry will definitely help us out.”

Martin Ford is looking at that game, in which Plymouth overcame the Heat by 67-79, for possible pointers as to how his team can defeat the reigning league champions, “I spoke to Gary Stronach [Plymouth coach], and he’s given me a few pointers, but we’re playing against one of the top two teams in the league. It’s probably a good time to be playing them, the trip to Germany during the week will disrupt their practice, and they’ll probably miss a bit of sleep.”

Riders split their two games last weekend, losing a thriller against the Marshall MK Lions on Saturday before bounding back to win at the BiG Storage Cheshire Jets the following evening, and coach Ford was pleased with snapping a four-game losing run, “We certainly played as a team during the whole weekend. We looked out for each other, and took the right shot at the right time, rather than rushing things. We played hard and did a good job containing Shawn Myers for a lot of Sunday’s game.”

PAWS London Capital and Kularoos Plymouth Raiders meet for the third time this season in league action on Saturday. Both sides have won on the other team’s court during this campaign, with Capital gaining revenge for an 80-63 loss in the BBL Championship by winning 83-74 in the first round of the BBL Cup.

While Raiders were recording their first ever win at league champions Poujoulat Heat Guildford on Saturday, Capital slipped to a 103-96 loss at basement side Worcester Wolves.  Coach Steve Bucknall was happy to accept the blame for the loss, whilst heaping individual praise on Worcester star James Life, “It’s disappointing, really, but I have to take the blame for not preparing the players mentally. We’re back to conceding 100 points, and maybe when you play a team with Wolves’ record, the players take their foot off the pedal, but it’s my responsibility to make sure that doesn’t happen. Anyone can beat anyone in this league, so our preparation has to play a part. To be fair to Wolves, their new player James Life was superb, he didn’t only score 34 points, but he shut Wes Miller down as well. He really brought some defence to the table, and guys who can do it at both ends of the floor are going to help you win games.”

Bucknall expects Raiders to be looking for revenge for their home cup loss against his side, “Plymouth will be looking for pay-back from the cup game, but we need to get back on track in the league, because the game at Wolves was a missed opportunity. They [Plymouth] are a good all-round team. Any of their starting five can win the game. They were a couple of players missing last time, and they’ll be at full-strength this time, so if we don’t play any defence we won’t win the game.”

Raiders’ coach Gary Stronach knows that it is an important match-up for his side, “It’s a big league game for us, we have managed to get up to joint third with Sheffield, and we want to close out November with some momentum. They are a good team, and we’ve each won on the other side’s court. Steve has them playing really well, there’s some tough match-ups there, and we will need to play well to get the win.”

With London having knocked the Raiders out of the BBL Cup, Stronach admits that he will cast an envious eye over their quarter-final game against Milton Keynes, which takes place on Sunday, “We’d happily have had two games over the weekend, we made a big mistake there, but we’ve put that behind us and have produced some good performances since then.”

Stronach sees Capital’s American pair of Sam Bradley and Wes Miller as they key to the London side’s chances, “We need to stop Miller and Bradley, but there’s others who can chip in as well. Bradley’s a really good shooter, he’s solid and he’s a great competitor. He’s a really good acquisition for them, They are playing well, and they showed that by beating Sheffield by nearly 20. We are going to need to be focused.”

Raiders go into the game on the back of a fine away victory at league champions Poujoulat Heat Guildford, and Stronach was pleased with the performance, “We played well enough to grind out the win. It’s our first win at The Spectrum, and we had to be professional under the circumstances. It was a good game for the fans, and we did enough to win. We had a solid last quarter offensively, but the key was our defence in the second half. We locked them down defensively, and restricted them to 24 points. It was a good team performance, and we did the right things at key times.”

The SAMG Verve Scottish Rocks will be looking for their third big victory of the season against Worcester Wolves when the teams meet in the BBL Championship on Sunday.

Rocks returned from the trip to the midlands in October with a 112-71 victory, and they repeated the trick when Wolves visited Braehead for a BBL Cup clash the following month – winning 84-55.

With Rocks travelling to Sheffield Sharks on Friday night for the huge BBL Cup quarter-final, player-coach Sterling Davis admits that they won’t really think about the Wolves game until Saturday morning, “We have to take one game at a time, and we’re thinking about the cup game against Sheffield first. The thing about Wolves is that you never know what you’ll get. Despite the wins we have against them, they can beat any team on any night. Their new signing Life is playing pretty good, and of course Anthony Paez is performing every night. Harker can also cause problems on the inside, and we’ll definitely take them seriously.”

Rocks played two contrasting games last weekend, comfortably winning 99-77 at Everton Tigers before losing a thriller 85-81 at home against Sheffield Sharks. Coach Davies had mixed emotions about his side’s performances, “It was a kind of mixed weekend. It was good to get a win at Everton, we played really well and did a lot of good things. We showed a lot of improvement from earlier in the season. But the Sharks game was really disappointing. We had a terrible first half and didn’t do anything right or play any defence. We came out with a different mindset in the second half, and played really well. We were able to get a lead in the fourth period, which is a credit to my team, but we made some crucial mistakes to lose the game.”

After going down to a heavy defeat at in-form Newcastle on Friday, Wolves ended their losing streak the following night, and coach Skouson Harker was pleased his side’s display, “We played okay, we were kind of tired after the Newcastle game the previous night, but we played better than we have been.”

New signing James Life had an impressive game for the Wolves, scoring 34 points and keeping Capital’s star-man Wes Miller quiet, and Harker was delighted with his performance, “James is starting to find his rhythm, he’s coming alive, and he’s a tough player. He plays hard, but he can do more than just shoot, he’s a good defender and he brings a lot to us.”

Harker is hoping it’s third time lucky when the Wolves face Rocks on Sunday and is looking forward to an athletic clash, “We’re tired of playing them, but I think the players are looking forward to going up there and seeing if we can get something going. Sterling Davis, Rob Yanders and Maurice Hampton are their key players, but I think the main thing is to match their tempo. If they want to get into a track meeting we have to be willing to match that.”

Parillon left the Sharks last week, and despite rumours to the contrary there was no falling out between Scantlebury and the forward, “We’re still looking to replace Steve, we clearly need another big man. He had an offer from Puerto Rico, it was a long term deal and we couldn’t match it. He needed to do it for his family, so we let him go.”

Newcastle Eagles look for their eighth straight victory when they host the Kularoos Plymouth Raiders in the BBL Championship on Friday.

Among those seven wins for the Eagles was a 76-69 victory over the Raiders at the Plymouth Pavilions in October.

After a tight opening first quarter where the scores were tied at 18-18, it was the Eagles who took the advantage in the second quarter with a 13-2 tear to open the period and take the score out to 31-20, and Raiders were never able to make up the deficit. Richard Midgley led all scorers in the game with 22 points for Newcastle, while Alistar Gall led the Raiders scoring with 21.

While his side will go into the game as favourites, Eagles’ player-coach Fab Flournoy isn’t expecting an easy ride on Friday night, “They are a particularly tough team.  They played well down there, and they always seem to get stronger in the second half.  They showed that at Milton Keynes on Sunday when they held them to 21 points in the second half.  I guess some of that is down to getting the travelling out of their legs and getting settled.

“Terrance Durham is finding his way again, and Drew Lasker is showing exactly why he is the talent he is.  Gary [Stronach] continues to do a fantastic job down there, he’s got the likes of [DeAntione] Beasley knowing their roles.  They are a well coached, hard nosed team and they will be tough to play against.”

Raiders’ coach Gary Stronach knows his side face a tough test in the north-east, the region from which he originates, “They are a strong team and I was impressed with their defence. We need to handle the pressure from them especially as they trap a lot. Offensively they are loaded, and pretty much any of their players is an offensive threat.

“Richard Midgley really hurt us at the Pavilions, as he came up with some big shots. We need to clear the glass as Lynard Stewart and Charles Smith are both good rebounders both offensively and defensively.”

Despite the threat that the Eagles pose, Stronach is excited about going back to his home town, “I’m looking forward to it, it’s a tough trip going there and back in one day, but we’re playing some good basketball.  We played well against the Rocks on Saturday, and we had a good second half against Lions.”

Raiders had a mixed weekend last week, they defeated Scottish Rocks on Saturday before a rousing second half recovery at Milton Keynes was not enough to seal a win after Plymouth had trailed 60-35 at half-time.

“We were pretty awful in the first half at Milton Keynes,” admitted Stronach. “I had a few words at half-time and it obviously worked but at the end of day we lost the game. We’ll break it down and look at the things we did wrong, but it’s gone now and we have to get on with it. We need to concentrate on two important games over the weekend.”

Teams at opposite ends of the BBL table meet at the English Institute of Sport on Friday evening when Sheffield Sharks host Team Birmingham Panthers.

While Sharks lie third in the table, Panthers are third from bottom in their inaugural campaign. 

Sharks come into this match after a weekend without a game, and coach Pete Scantlebury was pleased to give his team a rest,

“We’ve had a bit of a break, and we’re almost fully fit, so we should be in good shape for the weekend.”

Scantlebury saw Panthers’ narrow loss against the Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders on Saturday, and with their three import players now in the line-up, he was impressed with how they played, “They were athletic and played hard, it’s the kind of game where we are going to need to scrap if we are going to win.  Rob Paternostro seems to be pulling the strings on the court for them, and the two English guys who have stepped up for them this season are Dan Sandell and Adam Williams.

“Just because they now have their American players doesn’t mean we can afford to ignore them. The Americans look very athletic, and being their first game together they looked a bit disjointed. They will have another week together by the time Friday comes around, but it’s the kind of game we should win if we play the right way.”

Panthers’ coach Nigel Lloyd appreciates the size of the task facing his side, “Pete saw us play on Saturday, so there are no secrets. They are a tough team to meet now we’ve got all of the players in.  We need to gel and get used to each other, and it would have been better if we could have played someone a bit easier.

“They are a tough side, they came from being 17 down at the start of the fourth period against Leicester to win by one.  Their point guard Alto Virgil sets the tone for the team, and has a year in this league under his belt.  Justice Graham finishes well and plays well at the low post. They fit together well as a team, and Locker Okorie also helps set the tone for the team.  He’s got where he is with his work ethic, and he’s a great example to their other players.”

The Birmingham franchise will be looking to break a long-running jinx against Sheffield.  The last time a franchise from the midlands city defeated the Sharks was in December 2001 when Bullets won 75-70 in the National Cup semi-final, and Sharks have won the last 19 games against Birmingham.