The final week of the BBL Championship regular season turned up some improbable outcomes and leads to an All-Star 5 that includes two Newcastle Eagles for the second week in a row and is led by Josh McFolley as Surrey Scorchers got a first win in 10 games.
Josh McFolley – Surrey Scorchers
High-scoring guard Josh McFolley makes his second All-Star 5 appearance of the season after Surrey beat Manchester Giants at Surrey Sports Park on Sunday, finishing the season on a high with a first win since the opening weekend of March. In a game where both teams scored over a century, he had more than one third of his team’s points as he went 8-15 (53%) from beyond the three-point line for a total haul of 38, nearly completing a double-double with nine assists and six rebounds. That included an incredible 23 fourth quarter points as Scorchers came from behind late on, McFolley making six late threes and scoring all of the points in a decisive 11-4 run.
Larry Austin Jr. – Cheshire Phoenix
A home win over Leicester Riders on Sunday saw Cheshire record their highest BBL Championship finish since 2015, with talismanic captain Larry Austin Jr. now moving clear in second for overall All-Star 5 appearances, this being his second in a row and seventh overall. After a triple-double two weeks ago, he was close again with 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, along with three steals as the league’s leader in that category, setting the tone with 12 first quarter points as Nix raced into a lead, followed by six points in the fourth, icing 4-4 late free-throws, to separate the teams in an otherwise tight second half.
Marc Loving – Leicester Riders
Leicester secured second place in the BBL Championship table on Friday night with a win over B. Braun Sheffield Sharks at Morningside Arena live on Sky Sports, leading to a fifth All-Star 5 showing for Marc Loving as he moves joint-fourth among all players in that regard. He scored 25 points on 8-15 (53%) shooting from the field and a perfect 6-6 at the line, completing a double-double with 10 rebounds and handing out three assists, including back-to-back threes in a 10-0 burst either side of the first quarter break, and a couple of key scores midway through the third after they had temporarily slipped behind.
Justin Gordon – Newcastle Eagles
Newcastle finished the season with back-to-back road wins to sensationally snatch the final Play-off berth on the last day of the league campaign, beating Plymouth City Patriots to leapfrog their hosts in the process, led by Justin Gordon as he gains weekly honours for the second week in a row. The athletic forward had a big double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds, along with four assists and two steals, including five points and four boards in the key spell as they won the second stanza 27-12 and never trailed again.
Hasahn French – Newcastle Eagles
Prior to that game, Eagles had travelled to their northernmost rivals Caledonia Gladiators to keep their chances of those late heroics alive, taking the win at Emirates Arena behind a dominant all-round performance from big man Hasahn French for his third All-Star 5 appearance in the last seven weeks. It was another double-double for French as he shot 7-10 (70%) from the floor for 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, also dishing out five assists with two steals and a block, including four points, five boards and three assists in under five minutes as they came back in the second quarter, followed by six points in three third quarter minutes to keep them in front.
Off the bench: Vojtech Hruban (London Lions), Dirk Williams (Manchester Giants), Mo Soluade (London Lions), Josh Steel (Surrey Scorchers), Jamell Anderson (Cheshire Phoenix), Rashad Hassan (Plymouth City Patriots), Malcolm Delpeche (Bristol Flyers).