BBL Game Report: Manchester Giants 98 Newcastle Eagles 112

The Manchester Giants difficult start to the 2013/14 season continued as they remain without a win following a 98-112 defeat to the Newcastle Eagles at home on Sunday. Malik Cooke led all scorers with 32 points as the visitors improved their record to 4-1 this season and moved up to second in the BBL standings.

Starting Fives

Manchester: Gill, J. Jones, Watts, Aliu, Marsden

Newcastle: Gause, Lasker, Cooke, Martin, Defoe

The Giants set a season-high for points scored and out-rebounded their opponents for the first time this year but were unable to make their advantage on the glass count as they struggled to keep up with the pace in the second quarter and were outscored by 37 points to 19.

Stefan Gill has a spectacular all round performance for the home side as he led the way with 25 points, eight assists and a game-high 11 rebounds. He provided the early spark that his team needed with nine points in the opening period with several aggressive drives to the basket. The Giants guard managed to get to the free throw line nine times on the night and converted all nine attempts. He is yet to miss a free-throw this season – making all 20 of his attempts. The teams jostled for the early advantage but after ten minutes there was nothing to choose between them with the scores all tied at 27.

The second period saw the Eagles gradually shift through the gears and forced the Giants into taking contested jumpers. Their tactics worked as the home-side were unable to convert; making just six of their 17 attempts in the quarter.

The Eagles made them pay for their miscues as they moved the ball around the perimeter; finding open shooters in good positions and knocking down five of their seven 3-pointers in the period. Charles Smith and Malik Cooke both connected from long distance before David Watts answered right back with a triple of his own to make it 32-38 with 7:37 remaining in the half.

An 8-0 Eagles run soon followed as the visitors increased the tempo and began to seize the advantage much to the delight of the travelling fans. Four different players scored for the Eagles during the run as the Giants looked shell-shocked.

Marsden blew past his defender and laying the ball up to bring the drought to an end but the Eagles didn’t miss a beat as Smith knocked down a pair from the stripe and Cooke splashed home another three to put his side up 34-51 with just under five minutes left to go in the first half.

Scott Martin has a solid all round performance as he added 21 points and seven rebounds (five of them coming at the offensive end) as well as making several big plays down the stretch.

Charles Smith chipped in with 19 points off the bench as the wily veteran showed his counterparts than he is still capable of scoring with the best in the league. He knocked down open jumpers and went to work in the low block when the opportunity arose itself. He scored 11 points in the pivotal second quarter as the visitors turned up the heat and opened up a lead which the Giants were ultimately unable to overcome. He also chipped in with seven assists on the night.

Stuart Thompson stunned the home crowd in his return to the land of the Giants as he beat the buzzer not once but twice. With time winding down in the second quarter he gathered the ball at the top of circle and drilled a 3-pointer to give his side a 45-64 lead at the interval. The second one was even more impressive as he caught the ball on the move and unleashed a runner from a step inside his own half to give the Eagles a 74-89 advantage heading into the final period.

The hosts made a valiant attempt at a comeback with James Jones scoring 19 of his 23 points in the second half and Rob Marsden continued his strong start to the season with 22 points and eight rebounds in the contest. After trailing by as many as 22 points the Giants brought it back to seven late in the game but the Eagles maintained their composure to keep the Giants rooted to the foot of the table.

A fast-break layup by Marsden made it 89-96 with 4:24 left in the game, which led to an Eagles time-out. On their next possession Martin followed up a miss by Flournoy and finished with difficult layup whilst drawing a fourth foul on Watts. He missed the ensuing free-throw but gathered in the loose ball and scored again from close range to push the visitors lead back up to double digits with 3:52 left to play. Cooke sealed the deal with back-to-back drives to the basket to make it 89-104 with 2:44 left and put the game out of reach.

The home-side will be encouraged by the way they matched up on the glass against a more physical side and the fighting spirit they showed to close the gap after falling so far behind. The road ahead does not get any easier as they now turn their attentions to the BBL Cup where they face the unenviable task of going up against the league-leading and currently undefeated Worcester Wolves. The Giants will go into the contest as the underdogs, which may help them as the pressure will lie solely on their hosts which hopefully will allow them to play with the sort of freedom that they showed early on in this game.

Plays of the game

Stuart Thompson for his unbelievable shot to beat the half-time buzzer, which could only be topped by his shot at the end of the third quarter from just inside his own half.

MVP

Malik Cooke was the scorer that his side needed him to be on the night stretching the defence with his shooting ability and using his quickness to score in the paint when the opportunity arose. He scored nine points as part of a 37-point second quarter for the Eagles and put the game to bed with six points in the final three minutes in a highly polished display. Honourable mention goes to Stefan Gill who nearly managed the first triple-double of his BBL career as he finished with 25 points, an incredible 11 rebounds (don’t forget he’s only 5′ 7″…) and eight assists as well as going nine for nine from the charity stripe. His grit and determination kept his side in the game although he possibly wore down towards the end scoring just two points in the fourth quarter.

Next up

Manchester Giants away at Worcester Wolves, Friday 18th October, 7:30pm tip-off, Worcester Arena

Newcastle Eagles – Glasgow Rocks – Friday 18th October – 7:30pm – Sport Central