The Surrey Scorchers were unable to end their 12-year losing streak to the Leicester Riders, with the team from Leicester taking the win on their home court in the British Basketball League.
Leicester Riders became the first team in British Basketball League records to overcome a 23-point deficit to beat the Surrey Scorchers to the score of 94-86.
Starting Five
Leicester
Riders starting five: Miryne Thomas, Xavier Pinson, Caleb Asberry, Samuel
Idowu, Jaren Holmes
Surrey Scorchers starting five: Abdul Mohamed, Cameron Gooden, Saiquan Jamison, Padiet Wang, Josh Steel
First Half
Coming off
their first win in the 2023/24 British Basketball League season last week, the
Surrey Scorchers were able to start this game hot, creating a massive lead over
the Leicester Riders.
With the Scorchers taking and making the most threes in the League up to now, their offence stayed the same here, with Surrey making 4-of-7 threes in the first quarter. Former two-time MVP Justin Robinson set them off with six points, all from beyond the arc.
The Riders were spreading their offence around nicely but were struggling immensely from the field, only converting 31% of their field-goal attempts. A lacklustre 0 points on the fastbreak personified Leicester’s struggles, with their speed normally being their best offence.
Going into
the second quarter, the Scorchers had an insane 16-point lead, taking the game
to the Riders on their own homecourt, going up 28-12.
The
Leicester Riders weren’t ready to bow out without a fight. After starting slow
in the first quarter, Leicester started to come into their own with their bench
starting to show up.
Kimbal
Mackenzie and Conner Washington were the highlights for the Riders in the
second quarter, combining for 12 points.
Surrey were holding onto their lead with Saiquan Jamison hitting his first-ever British Basketball League three-point shot to go with nine points in the second quarter. But the Scorchers had seen their lead down to single digits, and the Riders were ready to pounce.
Going into the second half, the Scorchers led 45-36.
👌🤩 Justin Robinson doing what Justin Robinson does best for @surreyscorchers!
📺 WATCH LIVE: https://t.co/Msrm4i1Fy8#UNBEATABLE #BritishBasketballLeague pic.twitter.com/yVfmULexYb
— British Basketball League (@britishbasketm) October 26, 2023
Second Half
The Surrey
lead was starting to unravel in the third quarter, with Rob Paternostro’s team
finally starting to make this game a close one.
After the Leicester bench had started to invigorate the team, the starters showed their worth, with the likes of Xavier Pinson, Caleb Asberry, and Miryne Thomas all finishing the third quarter with at least double-digit points.
Surrey’s
high-octane offence was starting to show its limits with constantly missed
shots. Even though Surrey were still scoring, albeit on a lower percentage,
their defence and turnovers were letting them down, allowing the Riders to
score 32 points in the third quarter.
Going into
the final quarter of the game, the Riders finally had the lead, ahead of the
Surrey Scorchers, 68-65.
Leicester
were able to continue turning the screws on the Scorchers in the fourth quarter
after their stellar third-quarter performance.
Jaren
Holmes joined three of the other Riders starters in hitting double-digit points,
while Miryne Thomas was able to log a double-double in points and rebounds.
The Scorchers were unable to snap their 12-year losing streak to the Riders, which now consists of 40 games in a row without a win against the Riders.
Leicester Riders were able to leave their tense game against the Scorchers with a win, with the score finishing at 94-86
Player of the Game
Tonight’s Player of the Game was Miryne Thomas of the Leicester Riders. The Leicester big man was able to fill the box score with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists.
Team | Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
Leicester Riders | Miryne Thomas | 20 | 11 | 4 |
Leicester Riders | Caleb Asberry | 17 | 3 | 2 |
Surrey Scorchers | Padiet Wang | 18 | 6 | 5 |
Surrey Scorchers | Saiquan Jamison | 15 | 9 | 2 |
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