Surrey Heat @ UCP Marjon Plymouth Raiders – BBL Championship preview

Sunday’s game at the Plymouth Pavilions between the UCP Marjon Plymouth Raiders and the Surrey Heat is a battle between two top five sides who approached the season in two very different ways.

Gavin Love’s Plymouth Raiders chose to construct their squad throughout the off-season, recruiting big name established BBLers for their squad which resulted in them having a star studded line-up, talented enough to compete with the Newcastle Eagles.
The Surrey Heat, by contrast, made their moves towards the end of the Summer, signing a combination of former BBL players and untested and untried talent at British top flight level.

However different the recruitment methods, both have experienced early season success. The Raiders are unbeaten in the league so far with a 3-0 record, while the Heat have surprised many with a near flawless start to their campaign, winning five out of six games, including a recent hard fought 84-78 win over a dangerous Glasgow Rocks.

Coach of the Heat, Creon Raftopoulos recently told BBL.org.uk that although he was delighted with his sides form, it was important not to get carried away:

“We’re happy with our start but are not getting ahead of ourselves as we know this is a marathon of a season and not a sprint….Once we have played and matched up with all the teams it will give us more of an realistic expectation for the season.”

With both teams in the top four in a number of offensive categories, as well as laying claim to possessing between them, five of the top 10 scorers in the BBL (PR: Bell – 27.3ppg, Ojo – 22.0ppg, O’Reilly – 19.7ppg, SH: McLemore – 18.7ppg, C.Holmes – 17.5ppg), Sundays clash could be the game of the season so far.