Sharks and Riders on the edge of glory
BBL Championship Playoff Quarter Finals – Friday 27th April & Sunday 29th April 2012
One Health Sharks Sheffield v Leicester Riders
So they finally made it but the coming weekend sees Sheffield Sharks needing to up the ante as they take on Championship runners-up Leicester Riders over two legs in the playoff quarter-finals.
The Sharks provided yet another mixed bag last weekend with the elation of a stunning 102-99 comeback win over Plymouth Raiders on Friday and despair as they succumbed to a 98-77 defeat on the road at Cheshire. That dip at the Jets saw them take the head-to-head and climb above the Sharks, who had to settle for seventh position in the league and a difficult quarter-final match-up with the Riders.
A different story in Leicester where a 90-72 win over Guildford gave the Riders and ebullient Coach Rob Paternostro their highest ever BBL championship placing. Shooting ace Bradd Wierzbicki led the way with 25 points, followed by in-form GB skipper Drew Sullivan with 19 and league MVP-elect Ayron Hardy with 16. This came on the back of an 81-68 win over a reshuffled Newcastle side, who were undoubtedly keeping one eye on fixtures to come. Hardy (22), Wierzbicki (20) and Rundles (15) were the main contributors to this performance. Rundles has been a revelation in the Leicester jersey, posting 18.9ppg on average, closely followed by the pinpoint distance shooting of Wierzbicki only marginally behind at 18.4. Hardy puts up a fine all-round game. 8.4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2.8 steals and a shooting percentage of 0.676 only begins to touch the surface of the regular feature in the BBL Team of the Week.
The roles played by the likes of Brett Royster, Barry Lamble and Yorick Williams are also not to be under-estimated and it is clear to see that the Riders squad assembled by Coach Paternostro is most deserving of the runners-up berth.
Which Sharks side will they face? Another case of Jeckyl and Hyde last weekend, something they can ill-afford this week against the Riders. Sheffield fans would undoubtedly like to see something akin to the second half performance against Plymouth, where driven on by Ryan Patton, the Sharks overturned a 21 point deficit to come out winners by three with seconds to spare. Patton cranked up the gears several notches and his team-mates visibly responded as did the crowd at the EIS. Jimmy Langhurst finally freed the shackles to pour in 29 points, backed-up by Nate Reinking with 23 in a performance that suggested a return to fitness and Olympian standards.
Unsung hero of the weekend was Olu Babalola. The big Londoner posted a 22 point / 10 rebound double double against the Raiders and led the scoring against Cheshire with 18. The Sharks dipped by 21 points at Northgate however, something they cannot afford to do against a team of Leicester’s calibre especially given the two-legged format of the tie. Leicester host the second leg of the match on Sunday afternoon in the slightly-less-familiar surroundings of Loughborough University and hopefully Sheffield will be in a position to capitalise on this nomadic state of affairs.
Eighty minutes from glory or eighty minutes from the end of a topsy-turvy season? Sharks fans have needed to be eternal optimists this season. Why should this weekend be any different?!
