LATEST NEWS:
PLYMOUTH RAIDERS v MK LIONS
BBL Trophy Group 1
Saturday 19 January (7.30pm)
Kularoos Plymouth Raiders and Marshall MK Lions clash in a key BBL Trophy Group One game, with the winners likely to be favourites for a place in the semi-finals.
Plymouth are the current holders of the Trophy, and the Pavilions will stage the final in March, but they have found playing Lions hard going this season, with three away defeats against a side who lifted the BBL Cup on Sunday.
Raiders head coach Gary Stronach isn't underestimating the task ahead for his team: "It's a massive weekend for us. Hopefully we can come out with a victory.
"It's going to be a humdinger, we need to get back on track and they're on a high after the Cup win. I hope our fans will get their tickets early - we're expecting a sell-out."
PREVIEW: CHESHIRE JETS v PLYMOUTH RAIDERS
BBL Trophy Group 1
Sunday 20 January (5.30pm)
BBL Trophy holders Plymouth Raiders travel north to Cheshire, with coach Gary Stronach keen not to underestimate the Jets.
"Jets are tough to play against. They helped us by beating Milton Keynes, but you need to be wary of any team that can beat the Lions. I'm not sure if TJ Walker will be back, but even if he isn't it will be a difficult game.
"We managed to sneak it by three at home, although we were without a couple of players. But we're not the kind of team who makes excuses; we should be at full strength, and if we're not we have to get on with.
"It's a long trip, it's a tough place to play at, but we've got to be ready to go and pick up the win."
GUILDFORD HEAT 89 PLYMOUTH RAIDERS 72
BBL Championship
Saturday 12 January (7pm)
Third placed Guildford proved far too powerful for fourth placed Plymouth Raiders with an 89-72 victory at the Spectrum.
Heat were quickest to find their rhythm with runs of 12- 2 and 10-2 helping them to a 22-6 lead. A further 7-2 burst put the home side well in charge at the end of the first quarter 29-13.
There was more to come after the break as a 17-2 run, including three threes from James Jones helped them to a 48-20. By half time the Heat were well in command at 50-28.
Raiders hit back with a 9-0 run of their own early in the third but Heat responded with a 22-5 run to take them 75-52 in front heading into the final stanza. The Raiders made the score more respectable with tears of 9-1 and 14-1 - but couldn't catch Guildford.
STATS:
Guildford Heat 89 (29,50,75) (Gilbert 17, Dorsey 15, Jones 15, Harrison 15)
Plymouth Raiders 72 (13,28,42) (Beasley 20, Knowle 19, Martin 10)
RAIDERS 92 LEICESTER RIDERS 54
BBL Trophy (Group 1)
Saturday 5 January
A massive first quarter performance formed the backbone of Plymouth Raiders' thumping 92- 54 home win against Leicester Riders.
Needing a victory to give the Trophy holders a realistic chance of retaining their crown, the Raiders came out fast against a shell-shocked Riders side. A 16-0 start to the match ensured they held a healthy 31-7 first quarter lead.
The advantage was rammed home in the second quarter as Riders were once again held to single digits for a 52-16 half time score. Although Leicester almost matched Plymouth after the interval it was too little too late.
Raiders' DeAntoine Beasley led all-scorers with 20. Rod Wellington's 15 was the highlight for Leicester.
STATS:
Plymouth Raiders 92 (31,52,74) (Beasley 20, Knowle 18, Durham 11)
Leicester Riders 54 (7,16,35) (Wellington 15, Woodyard 13, McKnight 7)
MILTON KEYNES LIONS 90 PLYMOUTH RAIDERS 80
BBL Trophy (Group 1)
Friday 4 January
The MK Lions took charge of BBL Trophy Group 1 as they defeated the Kularoos Plymouth Raiders, who are reigning Trophy champions, by 90-80 at Bletchley.
Lions' seventh consecutive win was inspired by 7 three-pointers from Yorick Williams, on his way to a game-high 27 points for the night. Tony Windless added 18 and Shawn Jamison had 17.
Terrence Durham led the Raiders with 15 points and a massive 21 rebounds.
A tight first quarter saw the Lions edge in front as Tony Windless scored 8 consecutive points for his team to give them an 18-12 lead, only for a Gavin Love triple to peg them back as the Raiders finished the first quarter with just a 22-19 deficit.
The Lions pushed on in the second stanza and led 32-27. However, an 11-5 push to finish the half gave the Raiders the lead at 37-38 going into the locker room.
The home team made a decisive move early in the third as an 8-1 opening, inspired by Shawn Jamison, saw them regain the lead before back-to-back triples from Williams extended it to double-digits at 55-44, which they maintained through to 61-55 going into the decisive quarter.
James Noel scored four early points for the Raiders in the fourth period, but Yorick Williams made the game-winning plays as he hit four consecutive three-pointers as part of a 14-3 surge that made the score 77-62.
The Raiders responded with a 14-6 run, most of those points coming from the free-throw line, but a Tony Windless score and a further trey from Williams with 30 seconds left sealed the game.
STATS:
Marshall MK Lions 90 (22,37,61) (Williams 27, Windless 18, Jamison 17)
Kularoos Plymouth Raiders 80 (19,38,55) (Beasley 15, Durham 15, Lasker 15)
