Riders blast past Palatinates, Gladiators topple Giants, Lions devour Eagles

Leicester Riders, Caledonia Gladiators and London Lions all picked up wins in the British Basketball League Women’s Championship.

Leicester Riders 85-57 Durham Palatinates

Starting Fives:

Leicester Riders: Taylor O’Brien, Rayven Peeples, Marissa Hamilton, Samantha Ashby, Mckenzie Johnston

Durham Palatinates: Janika Griffith Wallace, Elle Hendershot, Eliza Brault, Katie Bennett, Harriet Ottewill-Soulsby

Leicester Riders stormed to another dominate victory this weekend against Durham Palatinates, scoring 85+ points in back-to-back games in the process.

First Half:

Both teams started the first half slowly, before Taylor O’Brien scored the first basket of the game for Leicester Riders.

From that point onwards it became the Samantha Ashby show. Scoring 14 points in the first quarter, Ashby helped give the Riders an eight-point lead.

The Riders also dominated the second quarter, with O’Brien continuing to shine. With her help, Leicester ended the first half with a 15-point advantage, 44-29.

Second Half:

The Palatinates started quickly out of the blocks with Katie Bennett, scoring within the first 15 seconds of the quarter.

But Leicester’s Rayven Peeples and Samantha Ashby produced some quality plays which saw Palatinates’ hopes fade away.

The Riders extended their lead to a 25-point advantage at the end of the third quarter.

The final quarter was the closest of the game, with the Palatinates’ Elle Hendershot scoring the final basket of the game to round off a good solo performance.

But it was Leicester who rode off with the 28-point win, 85-57.

Player of the Game:

Samantha Ashby’s incredible performance helped the Riders towards a comfortable win, with 21 points, six rebounds and three assists.

However, an honourable mention to Elle Hendershot, who put Durham Palatinates on her back.

Team Player Points Rebounds Assists
Leicester Riders Samantha Ashby 21 6 3
Leicester Riders Rayven Peeples 14 13 1
Durham Palatinates Elle Hendershot 23 11 4
Durham Palatinates Eliza Brault 11 3 1

Caledonia Gladiators 66-46 Manchester Giants

Caledonia Gladiators: Samantha Roscoe, Hannah Robb, Ariadna Pujol, Laken James, Kirsty Brown

Manchester Giants:  Brooklynn Mcalear-Fanus, Georgia Anderson, Myah Pace, Hannah Shaw, Sydney Hunter

Caledonia Gladiators saw off a first-half fightback from Manchester Giants to secure the home win and keep top of the table London Lions in reach.

First Half:

The first quarter saw the Gladiators first out of the firing blocks.

With help from Kirsty Brown, Caledonia were up by 17, before the Giants switched on and brought the gap down to 13-points.

The second quarter was a different story. Carrying over that form from the end of the first quarter, the Giants stared to mount a comeback.

By the end of the first half the Gladiators only held a six-point advantage, 41-35.

Second Half:

Any hope of a comeback for the Giants were dashed away.

The Gladiators showed why they are at the top end of the table, restoring their 13-point advantage with help from Samantha Roscoe.

The final quarter was a quiet one from a scoring aspect, with only 13 points put up in total by both teams.

The quiet quarter would have been welcomed by the Gladiators, as they saw the game over the line and stay near the top of the table.

Player of the Game:

Caledonia Gladiators’ Samantha Roscoe’s impressive first half performance, along with her baskets in the third quarter, sealed the victory. Roscoe put up an impressive 15 points, six rebounds and four assists.

Team Player Points Rebounds Assists
Manchester Giants Myah Pace 16 6 1
Manchester Giants Hannah Shaw 11 3 1
Caledonia Gladiators Samantha Roscoe 15 6 4
Caledonia Gladiators Hannah Robb 13 6 2

London Lions 102-56 Seriös Group Newcastle Eagles

London Lions: Katsiaryna Snytsina, Shey Peddy, Temi Fágbénlé, Abby Meyers, Karlie Samuelson

Seriös Group Newcastle Eagles: Chloe Gaynor, Marina Fernandez Pardo, Abigail Lowe, Lauren Saiki, Tierra Hodges

London Lions maintained their unbeaten record in the Championship this season, scoring a century of points against Seriös Group Newcastle Eagles.

First Half:

Temi Fágbénlé opened the scoring for London Lions just 13 seconds into the match, setting the tone for what was to come.

The Lions went up 20-0, with the first 9 points coming from Fágbénlé. The streak was broken when Eagles finally got onto the score sheet with Tierra Hodges.

But it was not enough for the first quarter, as the Lions kept Eagles at arm’s length with a 20-point advantage.

The second quarter saw Newcastle put up more of a challenge, with a basket in the first five seconds of the quarter.

But it was short-lived ,as the Lions found their groove again to continue to dominate the game.

At the end of the half, there were no signs of coming back for Newcastle, as they trailed the Lions by 28 points, 55-27.

Second Half:

The Lions started where they left off, showing no signs of slowing down.

Two late three-pointers from Katie Cox at the end of the penultimate quarter extended the Lions’ lead to 41 points.

It was a case of damage limitation for Newcastle, and they were able to make the final quarter the closest of the game.

The Lions were still able to get the win by a comfortable 46-point margin.

Player of the Game:

Another star performance from London’s Temi Fágbénlé, with 25 points, six rebounds and an assist. Her recent performances have been one of the key reasons why the Lions are still unbeaten this season.

Team Player Points Rebounds Assists
London Lions Temi Fágbénlé   25   6   1
London Lions Karlie Samuelson   16   3   3
Newcastle Eagles Tierra Hodges   21   6   3
Newcastle Eagles Lauren Saiki   14   1   2

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