25/02/2006
Riders 74 - Lions 80

DMU Leicester Riders could find no way of ending their losing streak after slipping to an 80-74 defeat to Milton Keynes Lions.

Riders started the game well and had soon racked up a 10-0 lead, but threes from Junior Williams and Nigel Lloyd to finish the first quarter had the Lions right back into it at 18-16.

Milton Keynes then posted a 9-2 start to the second quarter to lead 27-20. Riders quickly cut the gap thanks a Steve Bucknall triple which made it 29-27, although a three from Kevin Griffin to finish the first half gave the Lions a 38-32 lead.

A Huntley three and some good work from Tony Holley soon closed the gap to 43-40 and then Huntley combined with Deg Erskin to level matters at 50 just before the end of the third.

Lloyd again bagged a three to end the period and then Milton Keynes, through Tony Windless and Kevin Griffin, posted a 16-3 start to the final quarter to lead 69-53.

Corey Jackson then hit three-pointers on three consecutive plays to make it 69-62 as Riders tried to mount a comeback with 3.35 left. Lions stretched it back to 74-62, before five points from Huntley and a McHenry score made it 69-75 with 28s left. Kevin Griffin stretched the lead by a point from the foul line and then Bucknall gunned a long-range effort to close to 72-76 with 20s left, but Riders could draw no closer than four points.

Tony Holley led the way for the Riders with 17 points, 13 rebounds and 2 blocks, with Ryan Huntley adding 16 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Deg Erskin chipped in with 13 points, 5 boards, 4 assists and 2 blocks, with Steve Bucknall posting 10 points (3-for-4 threes) 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Corey Jackson marked his debut with 9 points and 8 boards, with Anthony McHenry adding 6 points, 5 boards, 4 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Marcus Knight netted 3 points.

Kevin Griffin had 10 of his game-high 21 in the fourth quarter along with 9 boards, whilst Shawn Jamison had a big second quarter for his 20 and 9. Tony Windless (12) and Nigel Lloyd (11) both netted double-figures with Lloyd adding 9 assists.

19/02/2006
Bullets 82 - Riders 79

DMU Leicester Riders crashed to their eighth consecutive defeat after throwing away victory at Birmingham Bullets. Riders led for most of the game, but still went down 82-79.

Riders dominated the first half and led 46-37 at the interval despite being with Joel Burns and Steve Bucknall.

It was more of the same in the third quarter as Riders stretched their lead to 66-53 with 1.30 remaining in the period.

But Riders then failed to score for five minutes to allow Birmingham 20 unanswered points and a 73-66 lead.

With Riders netting just one field goal in ten minutes, Birmingham led 79-70 with 90s left before Tony Holley tried to rescue the match.

He bagged nine quick points to close the gap to 81-79 with 9s left and when Jeff Bonds went 1-for-2 from the line Riders had a shot at overtime. Cam Wright’s last gasp three though failed to drop and Birmingham claimed the win.

Holley had 11 of Riders 13 fourth quarter points to lead the Riders with 23 points, whilst Deg Erskin chipped in with 20.

18/02/2006
Eagles 104 - Riders 87

The Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles moved level at the top of the BBL Championship table after a 104- 87 defeat of the DMU Leicester Riders at the MetroRadio Arena, the most number of points any team has scored on the Riders in regulation time this season.

Three triples in the first quarter, one from Charles Smith and two from Olu Babalola, as part of a 14-0 run, gave the Eagles a commanding 30-14 lead by the end of the period.

An early 8-0 response in the second period started the Leicester fight back, as Ryan Huntley and Anthony McHenry made threes of their own shortly afterwards to narrow the gap at 48-36 at the half.

Leicester looked good in the third and after 12 unanswered points they were right back in the game at 66-65, before the Eagles closed out the quarter with a 5-0 burst to maintain their advantage.

They continued that run as they opened the final stanza 8-2, and after the Riders came back at them, Newcastle nailed a further 9-2 run mid-way through the fourth to lead 91-82. There was no way back for the visitors when the Eagles posted 7 unanswered points late on.

England international Andrew Sullivan netted a game- high 30 points, whilst Charles Smith added 21. For the Riders, Deginald Erskin scored 25.

12/02/2006
Raiders 86 - Riders 72

The Kularoos Plymouth Raiders continued their push towards the Playoffs with an 86-72 defeat of the DMU Leicester Riders at the Pavilions on Sunday. It was Leicester's fifth consecutive loss in the BBL Championship and sees the series tied at 1-1 so far.

Carlton Aaron led Plymouth with 18 points, supported by 17 from Andrew Lasker and 16 from Gavin Love.

11/02/2006
Riders 72 - Eagles 77

Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles moved level on points with Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks at the top of the BBL following a hard fought 77-72 win at DMU Leicester Riders.

The two teams met last week in the BBL Trophy final when the Eagles ran out comfortable winners. However, this week’s version was a lot closer. The Eagles needed two late TJ Walker buckets to see off a spirited effort by a Riders team led by Ryan Huntley’s game high 22-points.

After trailing 54-60 with one quarter remaining a late Riders’ run had them down by just one at 72-73 before Walker stepped in to close out the match. England international Andrew Sullivan top-scored with 20 for Newcastle.

05/02/2006
Eagles 71 - Riders 50

DMU Leicester Riders crashed to a 71-50 defeat in the BBL Trophy Final as Newcastle Eagles retained the Trophy and added it to the BBL Cup they won earlier this season.

Riders’ downfall was the third quarter in which they were outscored 20-3, from which they were unable to recover.

It had been a different story in the first half as Riders controlled the tempo and led for much of the opening twenty minutes.

Tony Holley netted the contest’s first four points and despite Newcastle taking a brief lead at 5-4 and 7-6, Riders were in full command and six straight points stretched their advantage to 12-7.

A triple from Ryan Huntley and a Deg Erskin free throw saw Riders lead 16-8 with a minute to play in the opening quarter and Leicester took an 18-11 advantage into the second period.

Five points from Andrew Bridge helped the Eagles into a 19-18 lead after they scored the second quarter’s first eight points, but Riders regained the upper hand and eventually led 30-28 at the interval.

At the start of the second half Riders attacked the basket well, but on a couple of occasions when they thought they’d earned and-one opportunities, the officials adjudged the fouls to be before the scores and Leicester were given just foul shots.

This wouldn’t have been so bad, were it not for the fact that Riders went 1-for-8 from the foul line and Newcastle opened a 35-33 lead at the midpoint of the third.

Riders then started to cough the ball up which sparked the Eagles fastbreak and Newcastle took control of the tempo. Nine third quarter turnovers by Leicester were converted into 11 points for the Eagles as they netted 13 straight points to finish the quarter 48-33 in front.

That was effectively that for the contest and Riders never managed to bring the deficit back into a manageable margin in the fourth quarter.

Riders’ 50 points was the lowest in Trophy Final history, as was their 20 second half points and the combined total of 121 points was also a historical low.

Riders were led by 12 points and 7 rebounds from Ryan Huntley, with Deg Erskin adding 12 and 5. Anthony McHenry chipped in with 10 points. Tony Holley’s 19 rebounds saw him take another record from Alan Cunningham with the most in a Trophy Final to go with his 6 points. Steve Bucknall had 7 points and 7 boards, with Joel Burns netting Riders other 3 points.

Andrew Sullivan was named MVP for his 18 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. TJ Walker added 14 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists, with Andrew Bridge netting 9 of his 14 points in the closing minutes. Jeremy Hyatt added 11 points and 8 boards, with Charles Smith and Fab Flournoy (9 rebounds) also scoring 7 points.

04/02/2006
DVD's of Trophy Final

DVD's of the BBL Trophy Final will be available to order from www.bbl.org.uk. They will also be for sale on the Riders merchandise stand at home games.