Sharks pull off comeback in front of the cameras
BBL Championship – 20th April 2012
One Health Sharks Sheffield 102 Plymouth Raiders 99
A night of high drama at the English Institute of Sport as Sheffield Sharks came from behind and a massive 21 point deficit to defeat BBL high-flyers Plymouth Raiders with just seconds to spare.
The first twenty minutes was a case of men against boys as the Devonians raced into a 5-17 lead. The Sharks committed serious errors at both ends of the court as ex-Sheffield player Paul Williams threatened to run amok. Only Olu Babalola looked to have a purpose as Sheffield clung on to Plymouth’s shirt-tails with the scores at 20-33 at the quarter.
The second period followed much the same pattern. Swift, passing basketball left the Sharks at sixes and sevens as Paul Williams displayed the full range of what his former employers were missing, with the half time score closing at 43-58. Sheffield had slim hopes of hanging on to the game, primarily thanks to the efforts of GB guard Nate Reinking, who shot down four triples, injury worries looking to be far behind the naturalised Ohioan.
The majority of the high drama occurred in the second twenty minutes. The Raiders led by as much as 21 points at one stage, ably marshalled by reigning BBL MVP Jeremy Bell. However, consistent work inside by the persistent Babalola allied with Jimmy Langhurst, who eventually found his shooting range saw Sheffield pull to within nine points at 68-77. An end of quarter score of 73-81 was just reward for an increase in the Sharks tempo, as the crowd at the EIS rose to their feet urging the homesters on to better things in front of the Sky TV cameras.
Gavin Love called a time-out at 79-87 as the sides traded baskets. Anthony Rowe was particularly effective as the clock ticked down but with scores at 88-95 going into the final five minutes it was still anybodies ball game. Points from the highly-effective Reinking saw the Sharks draw to within two at 93-95 and with just seventeen seconds remaining, Mike Tuck conquered an unusually quiet night for himself by giving Sheffield the lead at 100-99. A 14-4 finish over the last 4 minutes 30 seconds was just what the doctor ordered as the Sharks shut down last gasp attempts from Martin and Bell to run out winners by 102-99.
Ex-Shark Paul Williams put up a superb display to register a double-double of 32 points and 14 rebounds for Plymouth as Rowe (20) and Bell (17) weighed in with substantial scores. However, driven on with enthusiasm by Ryan Patton, Sheffield could look back on a Babalola double double (22 points / 10 rebounds), and big scores from Langhurst (29) and Reinking (23) as the team that rarely shows up for forty minutes, crammed a seasons-worth of performances into an exhilarating half of basketball.
A winner-takes-all fixture against conquerors of Newcastle, Cheshire Jets awaits at the Northgate Arena on Sunday as Plymouth wait anxiously to see if Leicester can pull off a Saturday night victory and consign them to a largely undeserved fourth position. The Sharks welcome either Leicester, Plymouth or Worcester to the EIS next Friday, buoyed by a confidence boosting win that all Sheffield fans knew was possibly on the cards. The table doesn’t lie, but the playoffs are a whole new ball game and Sheffield know better than most what is required to achieve in this pinnacle of the BBL season.
