Leicester Riders are set for a return to Super League Basketball Championship action, taking on the 8-8 Cheshire Phoenix in Thursday night action.
The Riders look to respond to the end of their Cup campaign last weekend, meanwhile the Phoenix need to bounce back from back-to-back league losses which brought their record to .500.
Here’s how the game is shaping up…
Fixture information
Leicester Riders vs Cheshire Phoenix
Super League Basketball Championship
Mattioli Arena, Leicester
Thursday, February 13, 7:30 pm
Leicester return to League action
Leicester Riders are faced with an opportunity to respond to a disappointing loss on Sunday. They fell out of the Cup competition at the Semi-Final stage to Surrey 89ers over two legs. The sides entered the Second Leg locked at 93 each, and in a thriller in Leicester it was the Niners who had enough late in the clutch to hold off a Riders charge led by Zach Jackson.
Jackson scored seven straight down the stretch and had the ball in his hands with seconds left with a chance to tie. He lost his handle driving to the hoop, however, and Leicester fell short of a comeback.
The American wing led the team with 22 points and 7 rebounds in an impressive display.
Now the Riders can turn their attention back to the League, where they are locked in a three-way fight for the top of the table. The Riders, with a 10-4 record, are level on losses with London Lions and Sheffield Sharks ahead of them having played less games than their rivals.
This game, therefore, represents an opportunity to make up some ground with games in hand and climb up the standings with a win.
Cheshire look for bounce back
After winning four games in a row to improve to 8-6 on the season, the Cheshire Phoenix enter this game on a poor run of form after blowout losses to Bristol Flyers and Newcastle Eagles.
They found themselves down 22-0 to start the game at home against the Flyers, giving up 122 on the night and allowing Bristol to go 17-22 from deep, then fell 110-101 to Trophy Champions Newcastle Eagles, as the Eagles scored 31 in the final period in the North East.
The last two fixtures have contributed to the Phoenix allowing the most points per game in Super League Basketball at 94.2. On the other end, they lead the League in points per game, playing out some of the highest scoring games in British basketball this year.
Cheshire flies up and down the court each and every night, playing at a league-leading pace. Their midseason addition Larry Austin Jr, who came back to the Club after playing last season in Newcastle, is one of the catalysts for this, pushing the pace in transition at every opportunity.
Austin Jr was recently named SLB Player of the Month for his play in January, which saw him average 16 points and 8 assists per game.
This game, therefore, will feature push and pull between the flying Phoenix and the Riders, who are one of the slowest playing teams in SLB. Leicester will look to keep Cheshire in the halfcourt in order to play the game on their terms.
Previous meeting
These teams last faced to start December, playing out a nail biter in Cheshire.
Leicester looked to have sealed the game last, with Riley Abercrombie’s free throws putting them up 12 with 3:13 on the clock. But a late Cheshire surge, led by Cam Holden, meant Tyreek Scott-Grayson was at the foul line shooting three free throws for the tie.
He made the first two, but in dramatic fashion missed the third, allowing Charles Thompson to pull down the rebound for a Riders win.
Playing out a thriller in Cheshire last time we played Thursday's opponents…
— Leicester Riders | Basketball (@RidersBball) February 11, 2025Tickets still available!: https://t.co/BN5d2EEoAz pic.twitter.com/zsvT2MMNQY
Abercrombie led the team with 16, in a game with six Riders scorers finishing in double digits.
Tickets still available!
Tickets are still available for tomorrow’s action! You can secure your seat here!
