29/10/2006
Heat 86 - Riders 76

DMU Leicester Riders lost point guard Terrance McGee to an ankle injury after only two minutes and then back-up Rob Paternostro to the same fate just three minutes later as they went down 86-76 at Guildford Heat.

The double blow left Riders without a recognised point guard for virtually the whole game and that meant their fourth quarter rally was not enough to overturn the early-season pacesetters.

Riders were 6-0 down when McGee left the game and it was Paternostro who scored their first bucket to make it 10-2. Even though he soon followed McGee into the physio’s room, Riders recovered from 10-0 down to tie the game at 16.

Threes from John May, Mike Martin and Chad McKnight helped the Heat to a 11-2 finish to the quarter and Dan Wardrope then hit his side’s first nine points as they went 39-22 clear midway through the second.

Riders cut it to 39-28 late in the second quarter, but Mike Martin inspired the home side to an 11-4 finish to the half to give them a 50-32 lead.

Heat hit two triples at the start of the second half on their way to a game-high 68-40 lead, before Riders mounted their charge. Drew Alleyne and Steve Bucknall split an 8-0 run in the third quarter to narrow the deficit to 20.

Bucknall then started a 12-0 burst early in the fourth with an and-one and finished it with a trey as Riders cut the deficit to just 74-64.

Yorick then hit five of a 7-2 tear which had Riders as close as 82-76 with over a minute to go, but they could not close the gap any further.

Drew Alleyne led the Riders with 19 points and 10 boards, closely followed by Yorick Williams who posted 18. Dave Aliu was a rebound away from a double-double with 14 points, a figure matched by Steve Bucknall. Del Herriman added 7 points with Rob Paternostro and Adam Williams getting a basket each.

The Heat were led by 15 points each from Brian Dux, Dan Wardrope and Mike Martin, with Chad McKnight (13) and Chris Brown (10) also posting double-figures.

28/10/2006
Riders 78 - Eagles 85 (after overtime)

DMU Leicester Riders twice let victory slip through their fingers as league champs Newcastle Eagles snatched an unlikely 85-78 overtime win at John Sandford Sports Centre.

Riders had, to all intents and purposes, won the game in regulation, but even when Newcastle miraculously forced overtime, Leicester still had the upper hand.

But player-coach Fab Flournoy and Andrew Bridge combined to sneak the win for the visitors.

Newcastle got off to a good start with an 8-2 lead, but Riders matched that run to tie the game at 10-10.

A Terrance McGee triple began a 7-0 start to the second quarter by the Riders which had them 20-14 in front, but Flournoy hit from deep as Eagles posted an 11-2 burst to lead 25-22.

Despite threes from Steve Bucknall, Yorick Williams and McGee to finish the half, Riders were still one point behind at the interval.

Jeremy Hyatt hit the second half’s first five points as Newcastle moved 39-34 in front, but a trey from Yorick and a Del Herriman and-one highlighted a 10-2 burst by Leicester which levelled matters at 51.

Some great play from Dave Aliu was surrounded by threes from Buck and Yorick as Riders opened a 63-56 lead in the fourth quarter, but Flournoy bagged a three-point play as the Eagles closed the gap to 65-63.

McGee made it a four point game with 1.29 left and an Drew Alleyne block at the other end allowed McGee to make it 69-63 from the stripe. On the next offence, Hyatt stepped on the baseline to give Riders the ball back and when Darius Defoe fouled out with 47s left, McGee sank another couple of freebies to make it 70-63.

Another block from Drew seemed to have finished the game, but Yorick Williams’ fast break lay-up under pressure bounced off the back of the ring and the Eagles raced down court for Shawan Robinson to hit a triple.

That still only made it 70-66 with 29s left and when McGee made both from the line on the ensuing foul Riders were back 72-66 in front with only 28s remaining.

TJ Walker then gunned a triple with 22s left and on the inbound Newcastle knocked the ball loose. However, they only knocked it up and it hit the ceiling giving Riders an inbound possession with 17s remaining. Bucknall though bought a fake by McGee and passed the ball to Robinson who layed in to make it 72-71 with 17s on the clock.

Yorick went one-for-two from the line with 12.8 on the clock and Jeremy Hyatt tied the game with a 12-foot floater 2s from the end. Rob Paternostro did get one last shot off for the Riders, but his halfway line effort was too strong and overtime ensued.

Yorick gunned a triple on the opening play and Del Herriman made it 78-72 two minutes in.

Four points from Flournoy made it 78-77 and a Bridge offensive board gave Eagles a 78-79 lead with 1:24 to go. Yorick had a trey rim out on the next play and Flournoy fouled Drew Alleyne out with 52s remaining.

Flournoy missed the second free throw, but Bridge grabbed his third offensive rebound of overtime and Hyatt gave the Eagles an 82-78 lead. When Robinson came up with a steal on the next play, Newcastle effectively won the game.

Terrance McGee led the Riders with 21 points and 7 assists, with Yorick Williams going 4-for-8 from downtown for his 17 points, 6 boards and 3 steals. Steve Bucknall and Dave Aliu both had 10 points and 7 boards, with Drew Alleyne posting 8 points, 10 boards and 4 blocks. Del Herriman had 8 points, 5 boards and 3 blocks, with Rob Paternostro dishing out 4 assists and scoring 2 points. Adam Williams had Riders other basket.

Despite his now customary nightmare shooting from behind the arc at John Sandford (1-for-8) Jeremy Hyatt led the Eagles with 24 points, whilst Fab Flournoy (21 points) and Andrew Bridge (12) were a rebound away from a double-double. Despite only scoring 6 points TJ Walker was as usual integral to the win with 8 boards, 7 assists and 3 steals.

22/10/2006
Rocks 92 - Riders 89

DMU Leicester Riders slipped to a 92-89 defeat in Glasgow to bring to an end their three-game winning streak.

Riders started brightly by netting ten of the game’s first 12 points to lead 10-2. Leicester maintained their advantage through the first quarter, before the Rocks hit the period’s last seven points to grab their first lead of the game at 26-23.

The sides went basket for basket in the second period with the scores level on five occasions, including at 43-43 before Rob Yanders finished the first half with a bucket to give the home side the lead.

Seven without reply from the Rocks had them 57-49 in front early in the third period and they had extended that advantage to 14 by the end of the quarter.

The Rocks’ lead peaked at 77-60 early in the fourth, but four points each from Yorick Williams and Andrew Alleyne trimmed the gap to 87-79.

Terrence McGee then poured in Riders’ last 10 points in the closing two minutes, but his second triple of the spell came on the buzzer and left Leicester still three-points short.

McGee went 4-for-9 from behind the arc to lead all scorers with 30 points, with Yorick Williams and Andrew Alleyne each adding 17. Del Herriman netted 10, with Dave Aliu (6), Steve Bucknall (5) and Rob Paternostro (4) also scored for the Riders.

Rob Yanders led the home side with 23, with Julius Joseph chipping in with 17 and Sterling Davis and Mortiz Wohlers getting 15 each.

21/10/2006
Riders 93 - Wolves 44

DMU Leicester Riders racked up their biggest ever BBL Championship win with a 93-44 thrashing of Worcester Wolves.

The 49-point victory was Riders best league win since the formation of the BBL and their third highest top-flight win ever, behind the 51-point win over Liverpool in 1982/83 and a 53-point success over Cleveland in 1974/75.

The 44 points that Leicester allowed the Wolves was also the lowest ever points against for the Riders in a league match. Only a 67-42 Cup win over Liverpool & Bootle Police in 1968/69 and the ultimate thrashing of Watford in January 1982 – a 138-28 National Trophy success – saw Leicester give up fewer points.

Dave Aliu bagged five as Riders hit the game’s opening seven points and it didn’t take long for them to open a 15-2 lead. It wasn’t until the eighth minute that Worcester managed their first field goal of the match, but it was in the midst of a 9-2 Riders run.

Aliu bagged a three-point play to finish the quarter with Riders 27-6 in front and then hit the second quarter’s first five points as Leicester moved 32-6 ahead.

Riders were 46-18 in front at half-time and that turned out to be an unassailable lead as they would have won the game without scoring in the second half.

The Wolves enjoyed their best quarter of the match, trading scores with the Riders but with Leicester 30-points clear, Karl Brown was able to rotate his bench to the full with Carl Pearson into the action before the end of the third.

In the fourth quarter Yorick Williams was Riders only starter on the court, he hit a pair of threes and a driving lay-up before retiring to the bench. Despite all of Riders starters being on the bench, there was no let up for the Wolves as Leicester began the final period with a 17-1 run.

Led by Darren Mills, Riders’ back-up players won the quarter 25-6 to extend the winning margin. Riders could have taken the victory over the 50-point barrier, but graciously chose not to shoot on the final play.

Dave Aliu posted a double-double to lead all scorers and rebounders with 16 and 12. Adam Williams went 5-for-7 including 2-of-2 from downtown for his 15. Yorick Williams had 3 steals to go with his 14 points, whilst Terrance McGee handed out 5 assists and scored 14 as well. Drew Alleyne also had a double-double with 10 and 10, whilst Darren Mills didn’t miss a shot for his 8 points. Del Herriman netted 6 points to go with his 10 boards and 5 assists. Barry Lamble had 4 points and 7 boards, whilst Rob Paternostro hit 4 points in 6 minutes of action despite suffering from flu. Steve Bucknall hit a trademark skyhook, whilst Carl Pearson was the only Rider not to score, although he did dish out 5 assists.

Darren Hume-Francis was the only Worcester player to reach double-figures with 11 on a night to forget for the Wolves in which they shot just 25% from the floor, 16% from behind the arc and 48% from the line.

14/10/2006
Riders 109 - Leopards 72

DMU Leicester romped to a 109-72 victory of EBL side London Leopards as they claimed their first home win of the season and got their Trophy campaign off to a perfect start.

The performance was led by Terrance McGee who was not a million miles away from a quadruple-double with his 31-point, 9-steal, 8-rebound and 6-assist display.

A Duncan Ogilvie triple gave Leopards the lead at the start of the game, but when Riders posted an 11-2 burst to lead 13-7 they were never to trail again.

A 13-4 finish to the opening period, capped by a Steve Bucknall triple, gave Riders a 28-15 advantage at the end of one.

In the second period Riders, thanks mainly to Yorick Williams and Dave Aliu, poured in 12 without reply to lead 44-21 with only three minutes to go to half time.

But Calvin Fowler sparked into life in the closing minutes of the half with seven of nine unanswered points by the Leopards and then gunned two triples in a 10-0 finish to the half by the visitors to make it 49-42.

London then bagged the opening five points of the second half to get right back into the game at 49-47. It was short lived however, as Riders stepped up the defence and then started pouring in the triples at the other end.

McGee started and finished it with two long-range efforts and Yorick and Buck hit one each in between as Riders posted a 14-2 run to lead 63-49. Riders finished the third with a 9-1 tear and when they scored the opening bucket of the fourth the lead was back over 20.

17 unanswered points in the fourth had Riders 91-55 clear with still well over five minutes to go and Riders lead peaked at 109-65.

The game was ticking down the final seconds with Rob Paternostro running out the clock before Roger Lloyd raced from under the basket to tackle him in a move more often seen at Welford Road. It was an unnecessary finish to a good result for the Riders, but didn’t take the shine of their biggest win since October 2001 when they thrashed Worthing by 37 points in the Cup.

McGee went 9-for-16, 3-for-7 and 10-for-10 to cap his impressive stats line, whilst Yorick Williams added 25 points, 6 boards, 3 steals and 3 assists. Drew Alleyne had 10 points, 7 boards and 3 blocks, with Dave Aliu and Del Herriman both scoring 9 points. Steve Bucknall added 7 points, 8 boards and 4 assists, whilst Rob Paternostro had 6 points and 5 assists. Darren Mills and Adam Williams also chipped in with 6 points each.

Errol Seaman was Leopards main man with 18 points and 13 rebounds, whilst Calvin Fowler did little other than his little spell before half-time for 15 points.

11/10/2006
Raiders 87 - Riders 89 (OT)

DMU Leicester Riders claimed a dramatic overtime victory at Plymouth Raiders to register a second away win of the season. Riders edged the success 89-87 after 45 minutes of close action.

Despite some impressive play from Terrance McGee, there was little to choose between the sides in the first half. Riders, though, had the Lions’ share of the lead including 24-20 and 48-45 advantages at the end of the first two periods.

Raiders claimed the lead during the third quarter, but the sides went into the final period locked on 65.

It was more of the same in the final period, with the sides level at 78 going into the final two minutes. McGee broke the deadlock with 92 seconds left, but Gaylon Moore restored parity with 1.08 remaining.

Drew Alleyne gave Riders an 82-80 advantage with 8s left, but Drew Lasker forced overtime with a basket 4s from time.

In the extra period Riders started well with a McGee triple after 15s and after Moore and Yorick Williams both missed from downtown, Yorick made it 86-82 from the stripe. Lasker hit a couple of freebies to cut it to two with 2.52 left, before Alleyne restored a two shot lead for the Riders on the next play.

Lasker then gunned a triple with 40s left to close the gap to 87-88, before Del Herriman went one-for-two from the line with 18.3s on the clock. Riders prevented the Raiders from scoring on the final play to seal the win.

McGee and Lasker top scored with 27 points each, with David Aliu and Alleyne bagging 16 each for the Riders. Yorick Williams (14) and Del Herriman (10) also chipped in with double figures for Leicester.

07/10/2006
Riders 82 - Lions 89

DMU Leicester Riders are still looking for their first home win of the season after a hard-fought 89-82 defeat to early-season league leaders Milton Keynes Lions.

Both sides had enjoyed victories the night before with Riders narrow success in Sheffield and Lions home thrashing of last year’s top dogs Newcastle.

And there was nothing to choose between the sides in the opening exchanges. A Dave Aliu triple sparked a 9-3 run by the Riders to lead 17-13, but that was to be the biggest lead for either team in the opening quarter and the sides were level at 20 at the end of one.

The Lions posted a 9-2 run early in the second quarter to take the first real advantage of the game at 30-23, but it was short-lived as Riders replied with an 11-2 burst to lead 34-32, highlighted by a beautiful triple from Yorick Williams off Terrance McGee’s assist.

At the interval the Lions led 40-38, but another Yorick three followed closely by one from McGee helped Riders to a 9-3 burst and a 49-44 lead.

Riders led 66-61 with a minute to go in the third quarter, but Mike New and Terrell Brown combined to give the Lions nine unanswered points and a 70-66 advantage a minute into the fourth.

Riders quickly tied the game at 70 and then Kevin Griffin and Yorick Williams traded threes to make it 73-73.

Brown, though, bagged back-to-back triples with 3.45 to go to give Milton Keynes an 83-75 lead. Yorick then hit a massive long range effort and after Drew Alleyne gunned a couple of freebies, Yorick hit two from the stripe as well to make it 82-83 with 2.16 left.

With two minutes left Alleyne fouled out and Shawn Jamison made it 84-82 and the Lions big man had a stick back with 85s left to double the Lions lead.

Riders couldn’t get their long-range efforts to go in the closing seconds and Brown finished the game with three free throws in the final 25 seconds.

Yorick again led the Riders with 28 points as well as 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Drew Alleyne was a rebound away from a double double with 15 points, as was Del Herriman with 12 points, 9 boards, 5 assists and 2 blocks. Dave Aliu also had 9 boards to go with his 9 points off impressive shooting, whilst Terrance McGee had 8 points and 5 assists. Steve Bucknall added 6 points and 6 boards, with Rob Paternostro chipping in Riders other 4 points.

The Lions had three double-doubles in their stats, Terrell Brown (22 points and 12 assists) Shawn Jamison (21 and 10 rebounds) and Tony Windless (18 and 13 boards). Kevin Griffin also shot very well for his 19 points.

06/10/2006
Sharks 86 - Riders 89

DMU Leicester Riders claimed their first victory of the season with a come-from-behind success at Sheffield Sharks.

Riders trailed by as many as 12 in the final quarter, but inspired by Terrance McGee Leicester finished 89-86 in front.

Yorick Williams was the star of the first half with 21 points as Riders opened a 47-40 half-time lead. But Sharks veteran Todd Cauthorn sparked his side’s comeback in the third quarter with half of their 16 unanswered points as they took the lead 64-53.

Riders responded immediately, however, with nine straight points of their own to cut the gap to 64-62.

Sheffield headed into the final period with a 68-63 advantage but a 9-2 start to the quarter had them 77-65 in front.

Riders rallied again with a 10-0 run to level matters at 80. McGee then gave Riders an 82-81 lead before Cauthorn netted to put Sheffield 83-82 in front.

McGee netted four points either side of a Williams free throw as Riders moved 87-83 in front but Cauthorn gunned a three with 2 seconds left to make it a one point game.

Sharks immediately fouled McGee but he calmly slotted home both foul shots to ensure the win.

Williams led all scorers with 28 points, whilst McGee chipped in with 22 and Rob Paternostro 15.