11/04/04 Bears slip up against Towers Brighton Bears 73
- London Towers 84 After securing the BBL championship last weekend the Bears were brought back down to earth by the London Towers in a 73-84 defeat on Sunday night. The victory ensures the Towers will have a home berth in the play-off quarter finals, and although it was a meaningless game for the Bears the loss will have served as a useful warning against over-confidence with the off-season looming. The Bears were without the services of Nick Nurse, Rico Alderson and Tom Frederick for the game, but welcomed back a number of famous names, as ex-Bear legends Herman Harried, Jerry Jenkins, Steve Nelson and Billy Hungrecker joined the crowd. More significant though was the return to action of Randy Duck after a long absence through injury, and although he only played a few minutes there were hopeful signs that he may be able to make a valuable contribution in the crucial games ahead. The Bears got off to the better start in tonight's contest, with Mike Brown nailing a tough three-pointer and Kendrick Warren slotting 7 points to open up a 12-7 lead. The Towers responded well though, with Rod Brown and ex-Bear Ralph Blalock both connecting from behind the arc to spur a 9-0 run. Baskets were traded for the remainder of the first quarter, with the Towers holding a 20-25 lead at the first buzzer. The extra intensity employed by the Towers paid dividends at the start of the second quarter, as Ricardo Greer spearheaded an 8-0 run to open up an eleven point lead. The Bears were looking sluggish, but had their best spell of a game in an 11-2 run that was book-ended by treys from Yorick Williams. The Bears held a 42-40 lead at the half, but this quickly evaporated as the Towers again pulled ahead at the start of the third quarter, with Omar Sneed netting six points in an 11-0 run to 44-53. The Bears were clearly struggling offensively, scoring only 10 points in the quarter, and the Towers took a 52-61 advantage into the final ten minutes. Robbie Peers' men maintained their double digit advantage for the first five minutes of the final quarter, with Blalock netting a three pointer to bring the score to 61-74. The Bears were on the ropes but bounced back strongly, with Mike Brown grabbing a huge offensive rebound to spark an 11-2 run. At 72-76 with 2:30 to play the Bears were right back in it, but the Towers turned up their defensive pressure and held their opponents scoreless for the next two minutes. Blalock and Rod Brown wrapped up the game from the line, securing a well deserved 11 point victory for the Londoners. The Bears are next in action against the Sharks on Wednesday 14th (7pm) and the Lions on Saturday 17th (6pm). Both games are at the Brighton Centre. Bears scorers : Williams 18, Warren 17, Alleyne 15, Brown 11, Phillips 7, Siemon 5 Towers scorers : Sneed 19, Greer 18, Blalock 18, Brown 14, Youngblood 8, Etete 5, Kitt 2 04/04/04
Brighton Bears
106 - Leicester Riders 57 For the first time since 1993, the Bears are the BBL Champions! In lifting the League trophy aloft, Nick Nurse and his men have brought to an end an 11 year roller-coaster ride that has seen the Bears pick up the wooden spoon on three occasions and almost go to the wall too many times to count. The wild celebrations that erupted at the Brighton Centre when the final buzzer sounded were a joy to behold, and were all the more poignant because of what the team and their fans have gone through to get to this point. The wheel has turned. The Bears are back where they belong.
The Bears took the first quarter 21-9 on the back of 11 points from the Birdman, and steadily increased their advantage in the second, scoring on the fast break and smothering the Riders at the defensive end. John Smith was having some success in the paint, but the Bears were always in control, closing the half with a 6-0 run to 46-28. Brighton continued their run at the start of the third, with a trey from Mike Brown kicking off an 8-0 spurt. Yorick Williams was also on fine form from behind the arc, knocking down a trio of three-pointers in the quarter, and six in the game overall. The Riders had no way of stopping the Bears as they put together further 9-0 and 10-0 runs in the quarter to take an 80-43 lead into the final ten minutes. With the result beyond doubt the focus of the crowd began to shift to the result of the Sharks-Jets game, which would now determine whether the fans were going to get their wish and see the BBL trophy presented to the Bears that night. News came through of a 69-63 Jets lead at the end of the third quarter, and soon "Go Jets Go" chants built up around the arena. On court the Bears were putting on a show, with Alderson and Jason Siemon both slamming home alley-oops, and as the clock ticked down an expectant buzz began to spread around the arena, as rumours of a Sharks defeat circulated. With the Bears leading 103-55 and with 57 seconds left to play the party was just about to begin, but disaster then struck as a scuffle broke out on the court. Chris Webber threw a punch at Alderson, Rico responded, and suddenly ten players were facing up to each other. Webber, Alderson and Smith were all ejected, and what should have been a moment of unadulterated joy was temporarily tarnished. The game restarted and the crowd re-focused their energies into celebration though, and as the clock ticked down and news of an 88-74 defeat for the Sharks came through the arena erupted. As the players and coaching staff hugged each other and returned the exaltation of the crowd, more than a few tears were shed. And when Nick Nurse held the most precious piece of BBL silverware aloft, our joy was complete. Bears scorers : Alderson 28, Williams 24, Alleyne 19, Siemon 16, Phillips 9, Brown 7, Frederick 4 Riders scorers : McCaw 21, Smith 13, Attewell 11, Webber 7, Pegues 5 27/03/04 Rock shock delays Bears title charge Brighton Bears 61
- Scottish Rocks 72 The Bears' assault on the BBL league title suffered a setback at the hands of the Scottish Rocks at the Triangle on Saturday night. In front of a capacity crowd the Bears were able to keep their noses in front for much of the contest, until a decisive 21-0 run from the Rocks in the final quarter dealt the Bears their first home defeat to British opponents since March 28th 2003. The destination of the title is still within the Bears hands, but they will need to play with more discipline and composure in their remaining games to ensure the silverware heads south this summer. Kendrick Warren led the way for the Bears in the first quarter, driving to the hoop, knocking down a three pointer and slamming home a rebound to pick up 11 points in the period. The Rocks were staying in contention though, thanks in no small part to sharp shooting from David Kruse, Terence McGee and Jerry Williams, all of whom connected from behind the arc. The Bears led 22-17 at the first buzzer. Brighton maintained their slender advantage in the second quarter to take a 38-33 lead into the dressing room, but the Rocks erased the deficit at the start of the third with a 0-6 run to 38-39. At this point the visitors seemed to lose their shooting touch though, failing to score again for more than 7 minutes. In truth both teams were having a miserable time at the offensive end of the court, and between them managed to score only 15 points in a bizarre quarter. The Bears just edged it 8-7, and so took a six point lead into the final ten minutes. Nick Nurse's men seemed to have the Rocks on the ropes early in the fourth quarter when back to back treys from Williams and Rico Alderson stretched the advantage to 58-49 with 6:27 to play. The Rocks had other ideas though, and a brace of three pointers from Terence McGee kick-started an astonishing 21-0 burst from the visitors that lasted over 6 minutes. The Bears had clearly lost their composure, and were relying on individual skill rather than teamwork to try to stem the tide. When Yorick Williams finally stopped the rot from the foul line there were only 16 seconds to play, and the battle was lost. The Bears will need to re-group quickly as they aim to put their title charge back on track at Chester tomorrow. Bears scorers : Williams 20, Warren 17, Alleyne 8, Alderson 7, Phillips 5, Frederick 4 Rocks scorers : McGee 17, Kruse 13, Jerry Williams 12, Perre 11, Martin 9, Tramell 8 20/03/04 Bears beat Sharks in Overtime Thriller!
Brighton Bears 85 - Sheffield Sharks 81
(after overtime) The Bears took a massive step towards securing the BBL League title with this thrilling overtime victory over the Sheffield Sharks. Led by 30 points and 15 rebounds from Rico Alderson, the Bears held their nerve to fight off a late Sharks comeback, and are now four points clear of their rivals at the top of the league table with a game in hand. The game got off to a slow start, with both teams struggling offensively, and after five minutes the scoreline read a meager 4-4. A three pointer from Nate Reinking sparked the Sharks into life before Alderson netted four points in a 9-0 Bears run to 13-10. Threes from HL Coleman and Rob Yanders and two buckets from Jason Siemon brought the scores level at 13 all at the end of the first. Baskets were traded in the second quarter until an Alderson-Alleyne alley-oop kick started an 11-0 Bears run which included a trey from Yorick Williams and four more points from Siemon. The Bears had suddenly opened up a 36-27 lead, and headed into the dressing room with the game seemingly within their control. The Sharks had other ideas though, and noticeably raised their tempo in the third quarter to quickly claw back the deficit. The Bears were beginning to make unforced errors, and Lynard Stewart, Justin Phoenix and Coleman were quick to take advantage. A 5-14 run brought the visitors level at 41-41, but the Bears responded well, with Alderson netting a three pointer and a jam to restore a 7 point Bears lead, which was maintained until the end of the quarter. A three pointer from Sullivan Phillips helped the Bears stretch their advantage to a game high 12 points at 63-51 with seven minutes to play, but as the minutes ticked down the Bears continued to be called for fouls, and Phoneix and Yanders were able to claw the Sharks back from the foul line. In contrast the Bears were having a poor game from the charity strip (shooting 13 from 26 overall), and when Alderson missed two foul shots with 34 seconds remaining and the score at 72-68 the Sharks had a chance. Coleman netted from behind the arc with 20 seconds on the clock, and when Mike Brown missed one of his two free throws Lynard Stewart was able to make a lay-up to tie the scores at 73-73 and send the game into overtime. With Stewart, Phoenix, Yanders and Warren all fouling out the extra period became a war of attrition. The Sharks got their noses in front 78-81 with 1:26 on the clock, before a floater from Phillips narrowed the deficit to a single point. The Sharks committed a 24 second violation on their next offence, and then fouled Alderson. Rico nailed his first free throw to tie the game, but his second shot agonisingly bounced off the rim. The "Bird Man" was first to react though, and pulled down the rebound and slammed the ball home to edge the Bears ahead 83-81. There were still 32 seconds remaining, but Richard Windle's contested shot didn't drop, and it was left to Brown to secure the victory, and potentially the league title, from the line. The acting Bears captain duly obliged, and the 2,500 crowd at the Brighton Centre erupted in elation and relief. If the Bears can win at least four of their 7 remaining games, the title will be theirs. Bears Scorers : Alderson 30, Warren 23, Siemon 10, Phillips 9, Alleyne 5, Brown 4, Williams 4 Sharks Scorers : Coleman 22, Phoenix 19, Stewart 16, Yanders 12, Reinking 6, Windle 6 11/10/03
Bears Bury Bullets! The Bears made it three BBL wins out of three with this comprehensive victory over the Birmingham Bullets at the Burgess Hill Triangle. After a scrappy start the Bears put on a dazzling second half display to crush the Bullets and record an astonishing 37 point victory, that will surely have sent echoes as far north as Chester and Sheffield Four points from Jason Siemon opened the Bears' account, but it was fellow new signing Kendrick Warren who dominated the first quarter. The ex-London Towers forward demonstrated his all round abilities with a put back jam, a baseline drive, a long jump shot and a three pointer to notch up 9 points in the period. Three pointers from Rico Alderson and Randy Duck helped the Bears edge ahead, although a back injury picked up by Duck was limiting his influence. Baskets from Danny Craven and Ivan Johnson kept the Bullets in contention, but at the first buzzer the Bears held a 30-19 lead. The Bears' depth was clearly demonstrated by the fact that 9 players had already taken to the court. Some strong inside play from Danny Craven helped the Bullets pull the deficit back to 36-30 early in the second quarter, and when both Rico Alderson and Nick Nurse picked up technical fouls for arguing with the officials the Bullets saw a chink in the Bears' armour. An 11-3 Birmingham run, including 5 points from the line from Rob Paternostro, brought the teams level at 43-43. The Bears responded well though, ending the half with an 8-0 run that included a fantastic coast to coast drive from Sullivan Phillips. The Bears started the second half as they ended the first, knocking down 11 straight points to open up a 62-43 lead. Siemon had scored 7 of the Bears' unanswered 19 point run, but it was his and his team-mates' defensive efforts that really caught the eye. The Bullets were able to score only 4 baskets from the floor in the whole of the third quarter, and to compound their misery their top scorer Danny Craven fouled out with a technical. The Bears on the other hand were seemingly able to score at will, with Warren adding 10 more points to his tally as the Bears took the quarter 31-11 to open up an unassailable 82-54 lead. The fourth quarter saw a mini-revival from the Bullets, but it was too little too late. Sullivan Phillips continued to impress for the Bears, dishing back to back no look passes to Michael Brown and Kendrick Warren to bring the crowd to its feet. Phillip Perre also made an impact in his limited minutes, netting 8 points in the quarter. The Bears' lead peaked at 43 points at 108-65 - all the more astonishing when remembering that the game was tied just before half time. This promises to be a pretty exciting year…… Bears Scorers : Warren 28, Siemon 21, Duck 14, Brown 12, Alleyne 10, Phillips 9, Perre 8, Alderson 6, Gardiner 4, Johnston 2 Bullets Scorers :
Craven 14, Rutledge 13, Johnson 12, Gray 12, Paternostro 10, Hansell 8, Yabsley
4, Williams 2, Hasse 2
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