{"id":794,"date":"2022-12-09T22:23:52","date_gmt":"2022-12-09T22:23:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2022\/12\/09\/whelan-entertains-gladiators-bristol-battles-past-surrey-british-basketball-league\/"},"modified":"2022-12-09T22:23:52","modified_gmt":"2022-12-09T22:23:52","slug":"whelan-entertains-gladiators-bristol-battles-past-surrey-british-basketball-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2022\/12\/09\/whelan-entertains-gladiators-bristol-battles-past-surrey-british-basketball-league\/","title":{"rendered":"Whelan entertains Gladiators, Bristol battles past Surrey &#8211; British Basketball League"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong>BBL Championship<\/strong><br \/><strong>Bristol Flyers 78-60 Surrey Scorchers (15-12, 21-21, 24-19, 18-8)<br \/>Flyers \u2013 Bell 19, Delpeche 15, multiple 11; Scorchers \u2013 Martin 15, Jefferson 13, Johnson 11<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Leicester Riders 100-67 Caledonia Gladiators (21-20, 30-15, 28-18, 21-14)<br \/>Riders \u2013 Whelan 25, Thornton 16, Loving 11; Gladiators \u2013 Malcolm 12, Burns 12, Sloan<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Bristol Flyers triumphed 78-60 over Surrey Scorchers at the SGS College Arena, while Leicester Riders gained a measure of revenge on Caledonia Gladiators with a 100-67 win at the Morningside Arena on Friday night.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Final scores don\u2019t always tell the story of a basketball game, but sometimes they do \u2013 and tonight, fans were treated to both.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the 18-point Flyers win over the Scorchers signifies a competitive contest \u2013 with Thomas Bell overcoming good defence from the visitors at SGS College Arena to score 19 \u2013 the comfortable Leicester Riders win over the Caledonia Gladiators was a more dominant affair.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Riders got some payback after dropping two games to the Scottish outfit thanks to 25 points from Patrick Whelan, who was on form from start to finish for Leicester.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Bristol Flyers vs. Surrey Scorchers - Game Highlights\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HX7QvXW_DOE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s tough for any team to enter the SGS College Arena in Bristol to take on the Flyers. The home team was tied at the top of the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbl.org.uk\/competitions\/?WHurl=%2Fcompetition%2F34065%2Fstandings\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> BBL Championship standings on points<\/a> heading into Friday night\u2019s clash. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That might have been intimidating to the Surrey Scorchers \u2013 who were at the bottom of the table \u2013 but the visitors didn\u2019t show any such signs of hesitancy and came out of the gates with energy to take an early lead.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was Quincy Taylor who hit the game\u2019s opener with a big three, but Josh Jefferson assisted him on the kickout. He also made his presence on defence by stealing the ball away from a Tevin Olison turnover and Jefferson raced downcourt for a lay-up.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The home team settled down and got back into it by controlling the boards. It was captain Malcolm Delpeche, especially on the offensive end, muscling his way into offensive rebounds on multiple occasions to go back up for contested buckets twice in the opening few minutes. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This helped his Flyers take control of the first quarter and they finished it ahead 15-12.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It stayed competitive throughout the first half, and while the Bristol lead opened up slightly, the Scorchers were still fighting and moving the ball well \u2013 this meant Padiet Wang could get into the lane and find Ryan Martin for three, which caused Flyers coach Andreas Kapoulas to call a timeout to reset the defence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Surrey adapted and looked for post-ups when the three-point shots weren\u2019t falling. They struggled to get the ball into Shakem Johnson on the low block, but by pitching it back up to the top of the key, Martin was able to float the pass over the top for the big man to hit a layup and cut the deficit to three<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Soon enough, the game was tied up by Andrew Lawrence, who was fouled on a three-point shot and calmly sunk all three at the line.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before the end of the half, Bristol edged ahead, but the game was clearly up for grabs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It took a minute for the first points to be scored in the second half, but within the next 90 seconds, Bell punctuated a good spell for the Flyers with a smooth step-back three. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bristol kept up the momentum, and Delpeche got his offensive rebound-score combination of the quarter, followed by a lay up from VJ King.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"GET TO KNOW: Malcolm Delpeche\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/taTmUDNGrQ4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Surrey coach Lloyd Gardner wanted to slow this down and called a timeout, but his team faced full court pressure on the way out. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Scorchers battled down the defensive gauntlet, and Martin managed an offensive rebound before getting fouled and the forward hit both free throws.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite the strategy session, the Bristol crowd was giving its team a boost, and they opened up a 10-point gap with 90 seconds to go, which was closed to eight points going into the fourth.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each team traded threes to open the final frame, but Delpeche put a stop to it when he was fed the ball down low. He faced up to the basket and swept through for a tough straightline drive.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Flyers tried this strategy again, but Surrey\u2019s Martin sniffed it out and doubled on the catch to force Delpeche into a loose ball \u2013 the Flyers got the home team bounce and it ended up in the hands of Brandon Mahan after most of the opposition had started running down the court, so he got an easy layup.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Scorchers showed great heart to keep fighting, but they might have wondered how a close game got away from them. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There was just eight points in the game at the end of the third quarter, and potentially less had a ball or two bounced favourably for Surrey, but they were shut down thanks to an increased intensity on defence by the Bristol Flyers, and an impressive 10 offensive rebounds by Delpeche that led to 12 second chance points for his team.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bristol outscored the visitors 18-8 in the fourth quarter for what might have looked like an easy win, but absolutely wasn\u2019t.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"LIVE BBL! | Leicester Riders vs Caledonia Gladiators | British Basketball League\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/B4-cYLmoRjk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Two of the most exciting teams in the BBL this season got a much deserved primetime slot on Sky Sports, as Caledonia Gladiators travelled down from Glasgow to take on the Leicester Riders.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The visitors did their best to make their presence felt in Morningside Area by taking an early lead, thanks to Ali Fraser, who kept finding ways to get to the basket. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But that\u2019s when Leicester\u2019s Patrick Whelan stepped up. The Great Britain international scored eight straight points for his team, which excited the home crowd. They were further ignited when the Leicester faithful disagreed with an unsportsmanlike foul that was called.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was nip and tuck to start the second quarter. Jubril Adekoya came off the bench to score seven quick points, but Derryck Thornton wanted to make his presence felt and started attacking with ferocity. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He used quickness to get past Caledonian defenders for the layup, and they couldn\u2019t help fouling him when he tried for a second time \u2013 he sunk both free throws \u2013 then burst into the passing lane a few possessions later to get a quick steal and an easy lay in.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"GET TO KNOW: Derryck Thornton\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_Q77BvlCxF8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This was the start of a Riders run. Thornton kept putting pressure on the Gladiators, but he was helped by Marc Loving, who scored seven points in around 80 seconds to create a 16-point gap within about five minutes before the half-time buzzer sounded.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This lead continued to swell, thanks to aggressive play by Thornton again, who got the ball to Whelan on the perimeter. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Gladiators tried to scramble back into a defensive position but fouled the shooter to send him to the line for three successful shots. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before long, a 20-point gap had opened up, and this increased to 30 with two minutes to go in the third quarter.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Early in the fourth quarter, a poised play by Whelan attracted two defenders, and he took his time to find Kimbal Mackenzie with a cross-court pass. The guard patiently waited for his defender to bite on the pump fake, and Mackenzie took one dribble into the paint to maintain the 30-point lead.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Caledonia\u2019s Jordan Burns wasn\u2019t about to give up, and he hit a three-point shot, thanks to the assist from Kyle Jimenez, and Burns followed it up with a long step-back two.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With five minutes to go and such a big deficit to overcome, the crowd could have started to drift out to beat the traffic, but Mackenzie gave them a reason to stick around \u2013 he found a beautiful gap for Aaron Menzies to come charging down the lane for a heartbreaking dunk to put the nail in the coffin.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rider coach Rob Paternostro pulled Whelan out of the game at this stage after the guard scored 25 and grabbed 10 rebounds for a great all-round game. After the game, Whelan spoke to Sky Sports and explained his mindset. He said: \u201cI was just trying to play good basketball \u2013 nothing more, nothing less.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe home crowd in Leicester is great. We love playing here. It\u2019s no secret that we haven\u2019t lost here in a while. We\u2019re looking forward to some more wins in front of this crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI\u2019m expecting the next time we play against Caledonia to be different \u2013 they had some guys in foul trouble. They\u2019ll come in with something different. We were just sticking to the plan tonight \u2013 we knew what we were doing defensively. We were running it in practice against their sets, so it was a good win for us tonight.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAny big win is good, as you can see from last year. We\u2019re on a roll by winning eight of our last nine, and hopefully we\u2019ll make it nine of ten to keep it going.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Menzies blocked a few more shots and Mackenzie kept getting to the bucket for layups. There was another loud burst from the crowd when Blake Bowman got out in transition for a dunk, which made the Riders hit the century mark for a 33-point win in the dying seconds.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you want to be entertained by the BBL? <a href=\"http:\/\/bbl.org.uk\/tickets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to buy tickets to a game near you<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script>\n!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\nn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\nif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\nn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\nt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\ns.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script',\n'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');<\/p>\n<p>fbq('init', '1011873635634879'); \nfbq('track', 'PageView');\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbl.org.uk\/whelan-entertains-gladiators-bristol-battles-past-surrey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BBL ChampionshipBristol Flyers 78-60 Surrey Scorchers (15-12, 21-21, 24-19, 18-8)Flyers \u2013 Bell 19, Delpeche 15, multiple 11; Scorchers \u2013 Martin 15, Jefferson 13, Johnson 11 Leicester Riders 100-67 Caledonia Gladiators (21-20, 30-15, 28-18, 21-14)Riders \u2013 Whelan 25, Thornton 16, Loving 11; Gladiators \u2013 Malcolm 12, Burns 12, Sloan Bristol Flyers triumphed 78-60 over Surrey Scorchers [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":799,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}