The London Lions were able to continue their unbeaten run after beating the Cheshire Phoenix in game week five of the British Basketball League.
The only
remaining unbeaten team in the league continued with the London Lions beating
the Cheshire Phoenix, 99-80.
Now 7-0, it is very quickly becoming a herculean task for someone to break the streak.
Starting Five:
London
Lions starting five: Gabe Olaseni, Mo Soluade, Tarik Phillip, Matt Morgan,
Donte Grantham
Cheshire Phoenix starting five: Cam Christon, LaQuincy Rideau, Maceo Jack, EJ Stephens, Skyler White.
First Half:
After
arriving late to the game, the Phoenix also seemed to arrive late into the
basketball game, seeing themselves down 25-15 at the end of the first quarter.
Tarik
Phillip was the Lion to step up first this time, scoring eight points off three
shots in the first quarter while playing his trademark defence.
Phoenix’s
spark plug off the bench, Cam Holden, started out hot, scoring seven points and
trying to inject some much-needed energy into a slow Phoenix team.
It was a
very odd quarter for the Phoenix, only taking three-point attempts, a rarity
for the league-leading team in threes taken.
Even though
both teams started to score more in the second quarter, the score differential
stayed relatively the same.
Holden was
continually leading the Phoenix, finishing the first half with 13 points, while
Maceo Jack added six points of his own.
The Lions
went to their bench early, and it paid off with the likes of Josh Sharma scoring
11 points in the first half with Conner Morgan also adding eight points.
Cheshire
couldn’t get it going from three, however. Going 2-of-8 from beyond the arc in
the second quarter, the Phoenix were struggling to catch up to the London
Lions.
London went into the second half up 47-36.
🦁🥵 BEAUTIFUL hoops from @LondonLions as @Josharma20 finishes a nice move with a flush!
📺 WATCH LIVE: https://t.co/YbrhpBiCcs#UNBEATABLE #BritishBasketballLeague pic.twitter.com/Ekj6OwvvtZ
— British Basketball League (@britishbasketm) October 13, 2023
Second Half:
The Lions
were able to capitalise on the Phoenix in the second half, scoring another 31
points in the third quarter, extending their lead further.
The Morgans,
Conor and Matt had combined for 26 points by the end of the third, with Josh
Sharma also having added 11 points himself.
Cheshire
weren’t having any luck with their well-known shooting, only going 3-for-13 by
the end of the third quarter.
The Lions
led the Phoenix 78-58 going into the final quarter.
London opted
to use more of their bench in the fourth quarter, putting their reliance on
their bench to hold the game.
The Lions were just able to coast through the fourth quarter to grab the win and beat the Cheshire Phoenix by the score of 99-80.
Player of the Game:
Player of the Game for this game was Josh Sharma. The big man off the bench scored 16 points off 7-for-7 shooting to go with four rebounds and a block.
| Team | Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| London Lions | Conor Morgan | 17 | 8 | 3 |
| London Lions | Josh Sharma | 16 | 4 | 1 |
| Cheshire Phoenix | Cam Holden | 27 | 1 | 3 |
| Cheshire Phoenix | Cam Christon | 12 | 4 | 3 |
With the new season here, you can still get your British Basketball fix by following the League on social media or heading to our YouTube channel to relive all of the best moments from the current season.
