Saturday April
15th Noray Properties London Towers 81 (24, 41, 61) Guildford Heat 99 (23, 41, 66) A depleted and injury heat Noray Properties London Towers went out of the BBL Championship to Guildford Heat losing by 18 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. Towers were without Lynard Stewart who has returned home where his wife is expecting a baby. The starting five for Towers were Sullivan Phillips, Terrance Simmons, Antonio Hudson, Niki Arinze and Michael New. Towers tip but first points to the Heat after misses at both ends. Heat went on to score the first 6 points of the game as part of an 10 - 2 run to take an 8 point lead. Towers got back to within 2 with a spectacular alleyoop from Sullivan Phillips to Niki Arinze then a three from Antonio Hudson took them to within 1 at 13 - 14. Terrance Simmons levelled with a three pointer but Heat's Wellington answered straight back before a last second stop from Terrance passing on to Michael New to score the two to give Towers a 1 point lead at the end of the first quarter. Antonio Hudson got Towers off to a flying start in the second with another three to give them a 4 point lead. However, Heat responded to go ahead by 2 at 27 - 29 before Terrance Simmons put up another long three to restore the advantage to Towers. Both teams then failed to score for several plays before Antonio Hudson ended the glut with another trey to put Towers up by 6 at 41 - 37 with 1.37 to play. Heat came right back however, to end the half level at 41 each. Heat scored first in the third to go up by 2. Terrance Simmons restored the lead for Towers with a three before Heat responded with a 11 point run to lead by 8 at 50 - 58 going on to lead by 10 at 52 - 62 before Towers came back to narrow the gap to 5 by the end of the quarter. Heat scored the first 4 points of the final quarter to go back out to 9 ahead . Towers responded to get within 3 at 69 - 73 but Heat came straight back with strong three point shooting to get back out to 11 at 72 - 83 then out to 17 at 74 - 91. Despite Towers best efforts, Heat went on to win by 18, Towers playing the last minute with their five bench players on the court. Report by Phil Redman |
Friday April
7th Noray Properties London Towers 65 (20, 34, 48) Leicester Riders 88 (12, 39, 65) A depleted and injury hit Noray Properties London Towers went down to Leicester Riders by a massive 33 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Antonio Hudson, Niki Arinze, Michael New, Sam Betts and Terrance Simmons. Sullivan Phillips sat out again with damaged ribs and Lynard Stewart has returned to the States for the birth of his baby. Towers won the tip but Riders scored first with a 2 from former Tower Steve Bucknall. Leicester got the early advantage going up by 3 but Towers responded with a 13 - 1 run to take a 9 point lead at 15 - 6. Towers held on well to finish the first quarter ahead by 8. Riders came back at the start of the second with a 7 point run to get within 3 at 22 - 19. They then went on to level at 25 - 25 then lead at 25 - 28 going on to make an 11 point tear to lead by 11 at 28 - 39 before Antonio Hudson put up a three for the Towers to end the run. Terrance Simmons ended the quarter with a buzzer beating three to put the Towers within 5 at the end of the second. Gareth Laws opened the scoring for Towers in the third quarter with a three s Towers pushed back to get within 2 points at 43 - 45. Leicester then got away with a 12 point unanswered run to lead by 14 at 45 - 59. Ryan Huntley finished the quarter for the Riders with a three to put them 16 points ahead at the end of the third. Leicester carried on with the onslaught in the final quarter with nothing dropping for the Towers at all. The Riders went on another tear, this time 15 - 2, to go up by 29 at 57 - 86 as Towers were unable to respond, losing by 33 points. Antonio Hudson was the game high top scorer with 26 points for Towers. Report by Phil Redman |
Wednesday April
5th Guildford Heat 88 (29, 51, 71) Noray Properties London Towers 83 (23, 47, 70) The fifth placed Guildford Heat kept alive their hopes of home court advantage for the BBL Championship Playoffs as they defeated the fourth placed Noray Properties London Towers 88 - 83 at the Spectrum. In a tight game throughout, with multiple lead changes, the Towers gained the early advantage as a 6 - 0 tear saw them lead 12 - 15, until the home side responded emphatically with a 15 - 2 charge helping them to a 29 - 23 first quarter. The Towers came back in the second period and re-gained the lead at 45 - 47. Guildford point guard Brian Dux then scored the last 6 points of the half to send his team in at the break leading 51 - 47. There were six lead changes in the third quarter as firstly a Towers 6 - 0 run put them 57 - 61 in front, but again Dux was there to score the next 5 points for the Heat to snatch the lead back. Free-throws from Antonio Hudson followed by a Dean Williams score and a further free-throw from Hudson saw the game tied at 64. After the Towers had edged in front, Ajou Deng made a three-point play with 1-second left on the clock to give the Heat a 71 - 70 lead going into the decisive stanza. Deng then opened the fourth with a three-pointer (74 - 70) and from there the Towers could not get it back down to a one possession game until a Terrance Simmons deuce and a Gareth Laws free- throw made it 86 - 83 with 30 seconds to play. The Heat held their nerve and a Dean Williams jump shot with 7 seconds left iced the game. Lynard Stewart led the scoring with a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Towers. The Heat were led by 19 points from Dux, 18 from Williams and 17 points and 11 rebounds from Deng. Report from the BBL |
Monday April
3rd Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles 102 (25, 47, 77) Noray Properties London Towers 82 (19, 33, 59) Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles have won the BBL Championship for the first time in their history following a comfortable 102 - 82 success over the Noray Properties London Towers on Monday night in the North East. Victory over their nearest rivals, Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks, on Saturday night (76 - 69) twinned with the Rocks defeat at Chester Jets on Sunday (84 - 77) left the Eagles heading in to this game needing just one victory from their remaining four games to secure the title. After a close opening quarter England star Andrew Sullivan notched 6 points in a 15 - 4 Eagles burst midway through the second quarter to break the game open at 45 - 28. In the third quarter the Towers fought back to trim the advantage to single digits at 67 - 59 but the Eagles quickly responded with a 10 - 0 burst to take the lead back out to 77 - 59 and effectively seal the win and the Championship. Eagles were led in scoring by Englishmen Darius Dafoe (25 points) and Drew Sullivan (23 points). Eagles Managing Director Paul Blake was understandably delighted “This is a fantastic achievement for Fab and all of the players. It is testament to the work of the Tyne & Wear Basketball Development Group who have done a fantastic job of growing the sport in Tyne & Wear over the last 5 years. It is just a tremendous effort by the whole organisation both on and off the court”. The Eagles success keeps alive their hopes of a clean sweep of all four trophies on offer in the 2005/06 BBL season. With the first three under their belt they can now look to turn their attention to retaining the BBL Championship Playoff crown that they won last year. Report from the BBL |
Noray Properties London Towers 88 (26, 41, 63) Milton Keynes Lions 85 (16, 36, 62) The Noray Properties London Towers maintain their pressure on third place in the BBL Championship as they defeated the Milton Keynes Lions 88-85 at Crystal Palace on Saturday night. The Towers established a strong lead in the early stages and had a double-digit advantage by the first quarter break at 26-16. However, the Lions came back and were just one point down going into the final quarter at 63-62. Once in the final quarter London did enough to hold off the Lions comeback and in doing so claimed the season series 3-1. Antonio Hudson led the scoring for the home side with 23 points, whilst Terrance Simmons scored 20 and Mike New and Lynard Stewart scored 13 each. However, Ishua Benjamin led all scorers with 25 points in vain for the Lions. Report from the BBL Webmasters note: The BBL report doesn't mention that following two technicals, Lions had 7 free throws, made them all, then possession to give them a 1 point lead. Towers, without Sullivan Phillips but welcoming back Terrance Simmons, battled extremely well to win back the lead and win the game. |
Wednesday March
29th Noray Properties London Towers 103 (31, 49, 76) Birmingham Bullets 99 (31,57,71) Noray Properties London Towers strengthened their hold on fourth spot in the BBL Championship with a tense 103-99 success over the Birmingham Bullets on Wednesday evening in the Capital. The Towers victory was due in no small part to the offensive threat of centre Lynard Stewart who poured in a game high 35 points. After Bullets had opened up a 57 - 49 half time lead the Towers fought back in style to get in front heading in to the closing stages. Any hopes of a late Bullets revival were put to rest by a foul quickly followed by a technical foul in the closing seconds. Report from the BBL |
Sunday March 26th Birmingham Bullets 87 (18, 36, 52) Noray Properties London Towers 101 (29, 52, 78) The Noray Properties London Towers recorded back- to-back wins on the weekend after defeating the Birmingham Bullets 87-101 in the West Midlands on Sunday. The Towers controlled the game from the early stages as Antonio Hudson's 5 three pointers in the first quarter pushed them out to an 18-29 lead. They maintained that until a 16-4 burst stretched their lead to its peak at 68-40. They still led 80-52 before the home side came back in earnest. The Bullets went on a 28-7 charge to threaten London's lead at 87-80 but the Towers closed the game out down the stretch. Hudson's long range shooting helped him to 35 points on the night, which was matched by Mike New for the Towers. Skouson Harker and Yorick Williams netted 26 each for the Bullets. Report from the BBL |
Saturday March
25th Noray Properties London Towers 84 (28, 47, 65) Leicester Riders 81 (15, 45, 65) Noray Properties London Towers beat the Leicester Riders in a surprisingly close game by just 3 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening, having lead by 16 earlier in the game.. The starting five for Towers were Sullivan Phillips, Lynard Stewart, Antonio Hudson, Niki Arinze and Gareth Laws. Injury hit Towers were still without Terrance Simmons who is suffering from a reocurrance of his back problem. Leicester won the tip and scored the first points of the game. Play went end to end for the first few minutes, without either side gaining any clear advantage, until Towers went on a 14 - 1 run to lead by 12 at 19 - 7. Antonio Hudson scored the last points of the quarter for the Towers as they held a 13 point lead going into the second. Antonio Hudson started the scoring in the second quarter with another strong three and with 6.39 left in the quarter, Towers were ahead by 16. The Riders weren't giving up however, and came back with an 11 - 2 run to get within 7 at 40 - 33. Sullivan Phillips put up a three as Towers attempted to fight back, but at the end of the quarter, we had a 2 point ball game. With 1.22 played of the third, we had a level ball game and with 7.06 left, Riders were up by 1. Riders kept the edge for most of the quarter until following fourth fouls from Leicester's Darren Mills with 51 seconds left and Anthony McHenry with 27 left, Towers were back in the lead. However, a buzzer beating three from the Riders, got them level again at the end of the third. With 6.44 left in the game, another three pointer from the Riders had them back in front at 71 - 74. With 6. 23 left, Rider's Ryan Huntley picked up his fourth leaving the Riders in real foul trouble. A three from Sullivan Phillips put Towers back in the lead by 1. With 1.40 left, Rider's Ryan Huntley fouled out and Towers were up by 4. A big three brought Leicester back within 1, but Towers held on well to win by three. Niki Arinze was the game high top scorer for Towers with 24 points. Report by Phil Redman |
Saturday March
18th London Towers 88 (21, 37, 56) Chester Jets 90 (13, 37, 66) Noray Properties London Towers just lost out to the Chester Jets by 2 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Sullivan Phillips, Lynard Stewart, Antonio Hudson, Niki Arinze and Michael New. Injury hit Towers were once again without Terrance Simmons who is suffering from a reocurrance of his back problem. Jets won the tip and made the first score after one minute of play. They went on to hold the edge for the first half of the first quarter until a three from Antonio Hudson put the Towers ahead by 2 at 11 - 9. The three was part of a 12 - 0 run which gave Towers an 8 point lead at 17 - 9. At the end of the first quarter, it was Towers by 8. The Jets started to chip away at the gap in a tough second quarter and with just over 5 minutes left, they were within 1 point at 25 - 24. They later went ahead by 1 at 31 - 32. At the end of the second quarter, we had a level ball game. Jets started the third with a 10 - 4 run to lead by 6 at 41 - 47. However, Towers came right back to get within 2. They were behind by 4 when Michael New picked up his fourth foul and was sat down by coach Robbie Peers. With 4 minutes left in the quarter, they were down by 12 at 47 - 59. Consecutive threes from Antonio Hudson and Sullivan Phillips closed the gap, but at the end of the third, Towers trailed by 10. With just 7 minutes left to play in the game, Towers were within 6 points of the Jets. With 4: 48 left to play, Niki Arinze picked up his fourth foul and Towers were down by 9, having got within 4 a few moments earlier. WIth just over 3 minutes left, the difference had extended to 14. Towers then went on an 8 point run to 76 - 82 as Sullivan Phillips picked up his fourth. Niki Arinze fouled out with 1.06 left as Michael New and Gareth Laws and Antonio Hudson sank threes to keep Towers in the game. Another three from Antonio Hudson levelled the game but Chester's Martin scored 2 from the line after an imaginary foul, to put Jets ahead by 2. Towers had half a second to make the shot but hit the rim. Jets winning by 2. Report by Phil Redman |
Thursday March
16th Westfield Sharks Sheffield 79 (13, 40, 63) Noray Properties London Towers 75 (12, 39, 61) Westfield Sharks Sheffield strengthened their hold on third position in the BBL Championship with a 79-75 victory at home to Noray Properties London Towers on Thursday evening. It was a close game throughout. Towers led 12-7 early doors, before a 6-0 tear by the home side put them 13-12 to the good in a low scoring first quarter. There was nothing between the sides in the second stanza and Sharks just edged it, leading by a single point at 40-39 at the midway point. Sharks trailed by four points in the third, but 12 unanswered points gave them back the advantage at 63-57, only for Towers to cut the gap by the end of the quarter to two points at 63-61. Towers last lead of the game came at 68-67, but Sharks bagged 12 of the final 19 points of the game to seal the win. Terrance Simmons top scored with 27 points for the Towers, while Iain McKinney added 24 for the Sharks to give stand-in player/coach Todd Cauthorn a third successive win. Cauthorn is filling in for absent Head Coach Peter Scantlebury, who is in Melbourne with the England team for the Commonwealth Games. Report from the BBL |
Saturday March
11th Noray Properties London
Towers 82 (20, 46, 65) Guildford Heat 96 (27, 54, 82 ) A depleted Noray Properties London Towers went down to Guildford Heat by 14 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. Towers were without Lynard Stewart who has returned home where his wife is expecting a baby. The starting five for Towers were Sullivan Phillips, Terrance Simmons, Antonio Hudson, Niki Arinze and Michael New. Towers won the tip but the first 5 points went to the Heat until Niki Arinze opened for the Towers with a two handed dunk. It was the Heat who got into an early lead however, going ahead by 7 at 2 - 9, as Robbie called a time out in an attempt to plug the hole. However, Heat's run extended to 13 - 2 until Antonio Hudson made a three followed on the next two possessions by two threes from Terrance Simmons to narrow the gap to just 4 points. Heat pulled away again, but a slam from Niki and another strong three from Antonio Hudson, put the Towers behind by 7 at the end of the first quarter. With just over a minute gone of the second quarter, Towers were within 3 points at 26 - 29. A couple of plays later, including a three from Niki Arinze and we had a level ball game. However, despite some strong defence from the Towers, Heat edged away again to lead by 5 with 5.17 left on the clock. Threes by Antonio Hudson and Sullivan Phillips closed the gap again but then Heat replied with two threes of their own. Antonio Hudson responded with another trey but at the end of the half, Towers trailed by 8. Heat got the best of the third quarter with some strong three point shooting, getting ahead by 22 at 54 - 76. Antonio Hudson got the final score of the quarter with a three, Towers behind by 17 at the end of the third. Michael New scored the first points of the fourth quarter with a three followed by Antonio on the next. However, once again, Heat responded with long range shots to go ahead bby 19 at 71 - 90. With 5.32 left on the clock Gareth Laws was ejected for a push on Heat's Popoola stretching the Towers limited player resources even further. Heat's McKnight fouled out with 4.22 left on the clock but Towers had too much to do, losing by 14. Antonio Hudson was the game high top scorer for Towers with 25 points in a game where 22 three pointers were scored. Report by Phil Redman |
Sunday March
5th Kularoos Plymouth Raiders 73 (13,30,49) Noray Properties London Towers 74 (18,34,54) As had happened with Birmingham a week previous to this, the Towers and Raiders met for the second time in a week on each others courts. The previous game had seen the Towers finally beaten by a Raiders side led by Alistair Gall's farcical 7/11 from behind the arc helping them to a victory. This time however, Gall was less successful from behind the arc and it was to be the Towers who clung on to gain a measure of revenge for their earlier defeat. Robbie Peers elected to return Terrance Simmons to the starting five after injury along with Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze, Antonio Hudson and Sullivan Phillips. Towers won the tip as Lynard Stewart beat Gaylon Moore to the ball allowing his side the first offense of the game, which they converted through Niki Arinze who drove to the basket for an easy dunk. Both sides then spent a period of time trying to obtain some dominance through the game as both sides misfired. However, it was the visiting side who made the first attempt to break the game open grabbing a five point lead at the first buzzer 18 - 13. The second period saw the Towers offense begin to flow in the way it can when they are on form as they took a five point lead and extended it slowly into double figures at 27 - 17. Plymouth however, are not a side who lay down and die easily as their shooters Love and in particular Lasker tried to drag their side back into the game as they attacked both inside and out. They finished the half on a 9 - 0 run with four points from Aaron and then a play which bought the Pavillions crowd to its feet as Lasker launched a hail Mary shot from the half way line which dropped, cutting the Towers lead to just 4 at 34 - 30 when the half time buzzer sounded. If Peers’ players had been shocked by the Raider comeback they didn't show it as they began the third period with an 8 - 0 run as the Raiders still appeared to be in the locker room. By just over halfway, the lead had grown to 11 at 50 - 39. What followed then was a period of what could only be described as filth basketball as neither side could particularly find the basket at either end of the court no matter what they tried as pull ups, threes, layups and even third chance shots rimmed out. Raiders eventually found their feet and finished the quarter with a 10 - 2 run cutting the lead to 3 at 52 - 49 with 30 seconds to go. Peers’ side had to really dig deep to try and stop the rot which had set in. A Stewart score with 2 seconds on the clock took the Towers into the final period break with a lead of 5 at 54 - 49. Raiders began the final period with a 3 from Gall which was responded to by Arinze with a dunk. However, with 6:40 to go in the game, the Raiders finally managed what they had been threatening and took the lead at 61 - 59. However. an Arinze two over Moore and a long range bomb from Hudson gave the Towers back the lead at 62 - 61. They would not relinquish it again as it stretched to six points at 73 - 67 with less than a minute to go. However, Gavin Love nailed a three of his own to cut it down to a one shot game at 73 - 70. Raiders eventually fouled Lynard Stewart to put him at the line with 13 seconds left. However, to no-ones great surprise he fluffed the two bonus shots which would have given his side a bigger lead. However, no-one on the Raiders side found Niki Arinze who grabbed the rebound and found Terrance Simmons who was then fouled with 7.4 seconds to go. Simmons bricked the first shot but connected on the second to give his side a four point lead which they would need to defend stoutly and they still had two fouls to give before taking them into the penalty. Love decided that the best option for his side would be to penetrate into the lane and find a wide open Gall who drained the shot from outside cutting it to a one point game. But, as the ball went through the hoop, time expired on the game clock leaving the Towers victorious by one at 74 - 73. In truth the Towers had again failed to finish off a side who should have been defeated long before Arinze's rebound with 13 seconds on the clock had saved the game for the Towers and sent them back to the line for Simmons final attempt which gave them enough of a cushion to guarantee themselves a victory. Lynard Stewart again led the Towers with 25 points despite shooting a rather disappointing 3/7 from the foul line. Antonio Hudson had 14, Terrance Simmons 12, Niki Arinze 11 including the crucial rebound. Sullivan Phillips contributed 7 and Mike New 5 including a three pointer. Report by Jack Yoemanson |
Saturday February
25th Noray Properties London Towers 85 (15, 41, 70) Kularoos Plymouth Raiders 89 (18, 41, 68) Noray Properties London Towers went down to a surprise defeat at the hands of the Plymouth Raiders by 4 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze, Michael New and new signing for Lousiana, Antonio Hudson. Towers were once again without Terrance Simmons who is still suffering from a back injury. Towerswon the tip and scored the first points from Niki Arinze. With 6.15 left to play in the first, a technical foul was called on Plymouth's Gaylon Moore the following plays helping Towers to establish a narrow lead of 4 points at 9 - 5. However, a few minutes later, the Raiders held a 1 point lead. At the bende of the quarter, at was Plymouth by 3. Sullivan Phillips levelled the score with a three pointer at the start of the second, but a short while later, the Raiders were back in front with a 6 point lead at 22 - 28. A great block on the board followed by a score the other end from Sullivan Phillips followed by a one handed slam from Lynard Stewart helped the Towers level the game at 30 - 30. A two handed slam from Sulli put Towers back in the lead. However, at the end of the half, we had a level ball game. Plymouth had possesion at the start of the third quarter and scored first with a free throw. End to end scoring followed for the next few minutes until with 3.34 left in the quarter and the scores level, a technical was called on Raiders' coach, Gary Stronach. Shortly after, Raiders' Moore picked up his fourth foul. Then, Antonio Hudson scored his first three of the game to put Towers ahead. With 56 seconds left, Niki Arinze picked up his fourth foul. The quarter ended with Towers ahead by 2. Plymouth's Love was called for his fourth with 6.40 left in the game and Towers ahead by 1 at 75 - 74. Shortly after Ramos picked up his fourth. Antonio Hudson picked up his fourth with 4.26 left and Towers on a 7 - 0 run to lead by 6 at 83 - 77. Strong three point shooting from Plymouth kept them in the game and they were soon back to within 2. Antonio Hudson fouled out with 7 seconds left to play and the Raiders ahead by 4, going on to win by that margin. Report by Phil Redman |
Saturday February
25th Birmingham Bullets 88 (15, 39, 66) Noray Properties London Towers 94 (26, 42, 68) Noray Properties London Towers were made to work hard for their win at Birmingham Bullets. The Towers speeded out to a 26 - 15 first quarter lead but had been pegged back to just 42 - 39 by half time. And it was even closer after three quarters at 68 - 66 in the visitors favour. However, once the Bullets had taken the lead at 76-74 the Towers reeled off the next nine points to take control of the game. Towers’ new signing Antonio Hudson scored 18 on his debut. Report from the BBL |
Sunday February
19th Noray Properties London Towers 65 (21, 33, 49) Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles 87 (14, 41, 73) An injury hit Noray Properties London Towers lost out to Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles by 22 points at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze, Michael New and Gareth Laws. Towers were once again without Chez Marks who returned home to the States for surgery on Thursday and Terrance Simmons who was still resting his back. Eagles won the tip but it was Towers who got the first points with 2 free throws from Niki Arinze. Sullivan Phillips put up a three but Eagles responded with a pair of threes from Andrew Sullivan before Towers came back with another trey from Gareth Laws. Towers then went on a 11 - 4 run to take a 7 point lead at the end of the first quarter, Eagles came back at the start of the second with a 10 - 4 run of their own to get within 1 point with 5.37 left in the quarter at 25 - 24. A few seconds later, Newcastle took the lead for the first time at 28 - 30. Sam Betts was fouled under the basket by Andrew Sullivan who then was called for a technical. The Eagles then went on a 15 - 1 run to lead by 10 at 29 - 39. At the end of the half, it was Eagles by 8. Newcastle had possession ath the start of the second and scored the first points. With 6.10 to play and Eagles getting 7 offensive rebounds, the lead had extended to 12 at 39 - 51. With just over 3 minutes to play, Towers were behind by 20. At the end of the third quarter, Towers were down by 24. Newcastle's Defoe picked up his fourth foul with just over 4 minutes left as Towers tried to climb their mountain. Sullivan Phillips and Sam Betts both scored threes to narrow the gap but there was just to much to do. Eagles winning by 22. Andrew Sullivan was the game high top scorer for Newcastle while Lynard Stewart top scored for Towers. Report by Phil Redman |
Saturday February
18th Noray Properties London Towers 95 (30, 50, 70) Birmingham Bullets 76 (17, 38, 53) The Noray Properties London Towers snapped a two game losing run as they beat the Birmingham Bullets 95-76 in the first meeting between the teams in the BBL Championship this season. The Towers established an early lead at Crystal Palace and were in a dominant position by the end of the first ten minutes, 30-17 to the good. The Bullets struggled to close that gap throughout the game as the home side forced the issue after half time and extended their lead to 70-53 going into the final stanza. Behind the scoring of their big men, the Towers kept their visitors at arms length and closed the game out safely in the lead. Lynard Stewart led the victors with 26 points, whilst Mike New made 21 and Niki Arinze added 17. Yorick Williams led all scorers with 28 points in vain. Report from the BBL |
Wednesday February
15th Noray Properties London
Towers 84 (19, 43, 64) Brighton Bears 103 (26 , 57, 83) Noray Properties London Towers suffered their second loss in a row, this time to the Genesis Brighton Bears, featuring NBA legend and recent Celebrity Big Brother star, Dennis Rodman, at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Sullivan Phillips, Terrance Simmons and Michael New. Niki Arinze sitting out the game with an injured ankle. Towers won the tip, but Bears scored first from the free throw line with 2 minutes 4 seconds gone from the game, after several possessions and missed shots from both sides. It was the Bears that took the early advantage, going into a 6 point lead at 4 - 10 with just over 5 minutes to play. A big three from Terrance Simmons broke the Bears run, but Towers, despite a one handed slam from Lynard Stewart and a two handed dunk from Chez Marks were unable to pull back, finishing the frist period down by 7. With just under 3 minutes played of the second quarter, Bears had extended their lead to 14 at 21 - 35 and the foul count was 5 - 1. Sullivan Phillips put up a three, but strong three point shooting from the Bears, kept them in the lead. With 2.25 left in the half and the score on 37 - 52, a technical was called on Bears' Stewart, then with 42 seconds left, Michael New was called for his fourth foul. The quarter ending with Towers down by 14. Towers had possession at the start of the third, Lynard Stewart scoring the first points of the half. However, with 6.59 left to play, Bears had extended their lead to 19 as Michael New fouled out. Towers brought on 3 bench players, Sam Betts, Gareth Laws and Chad Kiernan who began to make an impression with Gareth shooting a three. However, Towers were behind by 19 at the end of the third. Another three from Gareth cut the gap to 14, but that was about all the impression Towers could make, finishing the game with 5 bench players on the court. Sam Betts beat the buzzer at the end of the game with a three, but Towers lost the game by 19. Lynnard Stewart was the top scorer for the Towers with 32 points. Dennis Rodman managed just 9 rebounds and 4 points. Report by Phil Redman |
Saturday February
11th Noray Properties London
Towers 76 (14, 27, 53) Westfield Sharks Sheffield 80 (21, 41, 51) Westfield Sharks Sheffield leap-frogged Noray Properties London Towers into third place in the BBL Championship with a superb 80-76 win at Crystal Palace. The Sharks had dominated the first half after leading 21-14 after 10 minutes and 41-27 at the interval only to fall behind following a tremendous effort by the Towers in the third quarter. A 26-10 period to the home team had them entering the final stanza 53-51 in front and seemingly bound for the victory. However, Sharks captain Iain McKinney was in vintage form from beyond the three-point to guide his team back from 64-59 down to take the win back to South Yorkshire. Sterling Davis continued his good season with 19-points for the Sharks alongside Blake Shelton, also with 19. Terrance Simmons had a game high 24 for London. Report from the BBL |
Thursday February
9th Guildford Heat 80 (15,
31, 53) Noray Properties London
Towers 95 (25,45,69) Noray Properties London Towers notched up their fourth consecutive BBL Championship success with a 95-80 win on the road over the Guildford Heat. After the teams had traded early runs the Towers put together an 11-2 tear to force the first significant daylight between the teams at 20-10 late in the opening quarter. An 11-0 start to the second quarter moved the visitors 35-18 clear and despite holding an advantage for the remainder of the game they never quite shook off a resilient Heat side. Hopes of a Heat fightback early in the final stanza following an Ajou Deng three pointer were quickly removed when the Towers posted a 7-2 run to make the game safe at 76-58. Towers Mike New led all scorers with 25 points. Report from the BBL |
Saturday February 4th Noray Properties London Towers 81 (23, 44, 66) TCS Chester Jets 75 (18, 38, 56) Noray Properties London Towers gained a hard fought second straight victory over the Chester Jets at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze, Terrance Simmons and Michael New. Towers won the tip and scored the first points from Lynard Stewart. The two teams traded baskets for the early part of the quarter, until a long three from Chez Marks gave Towers a narrow lead at 9 - 6. Jets came back to level before Towers went on a 7 point run helped by a big three from Terrance Simmons getting them ahead by 9 at 23 - 14. Jets came back again and at the end of the first, it was Towers by 5. Within 1.5 minutes of the second quarter, the Jets had pushed ahead by 1 at 24 - 25. Towers then went on a 12 - 0 run finishing with a spectacular one handed slam from Terrance Simmons to go 11 points ahead at 36 - 27. However, Jets weren't ready to concede and came back to within 6 to finish the quarter at 44 - 38. Terrance Simmons shot another long three helping Towers to get ahead by 12 points half way through the third quarter at 57 - 45. Towers worked hard to stay in control and finished the third 10 points to the good. Both teams traded baskets at the start of the final stanza then the Jets began to close the gap to 6 at 68 - 62. Niki Arinze was forced to retire with an injured ankle, then with 7.24 left to play, Chez Marks popped his arm on a defensive play bringing Sam Betts into the game. Jets got back to within 4, then Sullivan Phillips slammed a big dunk to widen the gap once again. With just over 4 minutes left, both teams were in foul trouble, with Billy Singleton, Sullivan Phillips and Michael New all on four fouls. Yet another long trey from Terrance under pressure put Towers up by 9 at 76 - 67. Stewart and Myers traded threes in the last minute, but Jets were unable to get back, Towers winning by 6. Lynard Stewart top scored for Towers with 21 points. Sullivan Phillips got a triple double, Lynard Stewart and Niki Arinze both got double doubles. Billy Singleton high scored for the Jets with 22 points. Report by Phil Redman |
Sunday January 29th TCS Chester Jets 96 (24, 50, 74) Noray Properties London Towers 98 (21, 48, 72) The last time these sides met the game was decided in the final seconds from the foul line as the Towers emerged victorious with a close three point win. This time, the game was to be decided from the line. However, it was to be a two point win for the visiting side to add to their win claimed the night before against Leicester. Robbie Peers lined up with a starting five of Terrance Simmons, Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze and Sullivan Phillips. Whilst the Jets began with Phillip Gilbert, Damon Bailey, John Simpson, Shawn Myers and Billy Singleton. Chester won the opening tip and scored on their opening possession through a Myers trey from the corner. The first of what turned out to be a farcical amount made by both sides. The first Towers offence however was to be a little less successful as Sullivan Phillips tried to find Lynard Stewart down low but only succeeded in throwing the ball two feet over the big man's head into the wall behind the basket. That was to be a minor blip however, as Marks stole the ball back on the next possession and fed Stewart for a dunk to open the Towers account. Then the Jets began to make a run which culminated in them opening up a 9 point lead at 15 – 6. This was to be the largest advantage either side would have in the contest. However, six points straight from the Towers courtesy of long range bombs from Sullivan Phillips and Chez Marks bought the lead back to just three. Whilst the three point shooting competition was occurring between the sides, the battle in the paint between Mike New and Billy Singleton was something to behold as neither man gave either an inch. With the Towers starting the period down 24 - 21 the onus was on Marks and Simmons to keep the long range shooting going. However, it was Phillip Gilbert who drained the first shot of the period, unsurprisingly for three from at least 20 feet. However, on the next possession, the irrepressible Marks drained another long ranger to bring the lead back to three. Both sides continued to trade baskets before Marks found another two long rangers to tie the scores at 41 with 2 minutes left in the half. Myers was to follow up the brief period of scoring with two points obtained from a John Simpson steal. However, Marks with his 5th 3 pointer of the half gave the Towers the lead for the first time which was extended by a Mike New jumper to make it 48 – 47. However, Terrance Simmons turned the ball over with 9 seconds left in the half which allowed Gilbert to add another trey to his account giving the Jets a 2 point lead at half time 50 - 48. If the first half had been the Chez Marks show, the second was to be the Terrance Simmons show as he began the half with back to back threes to give the Towers their biggest lead of the game. However, the Jets would not die quietly and kept coming back at the Towers. Gilbert adding another trey to his account as both sides made long range shots like lay-ups, which was quite handy for the Towers as the missed endless simple lay-ups and tip ins. Both sides traded scores for the remainder of the period and eventually when the buzzer came it was the Jets who found themselves up by 2 points at 74 - 72. Mike New picked up the first score of the final period to tie the scores before Myers and Bailey picked up six quick points for the Jets to make it 80 - 74 and begin to look like they would take the game away from Peers’ side. After a brief time out, Simmons helped himself to eight straight points tying the scores at 82 and showing yet again that this Towers side refuse to die quietly. The sides traded scores again through Myers, Bailey and a last second Billy Singleton two for the Jets and Simmons, Phillips and Stewart. The very next possession saw the Towers regain the lead again at 92 - 91 off a Stewart dunk and a steal from Marks off Anthony Martin allowed him to go coast to coast for a score of 94 – 91. But another score from the home side saw the lead cut back to a single score and the pressure back on the Towers. Then came the game's defining moment as Simmons picked up the ball in the corner in front of the Jets bench and released a shot which hit nothing but twine and gave the Towers a 97 - 93 lead and left the Jets needing a score which they duly found through Myers with a three of his own to cut the lead to just one and allow them to foul and try to save the game. When they eventually fouled Sullivan Phillips three times in one second it left the Towers at the line with the chance to secure the game. The first was sunk comfortably to give the Towers a 98 - 96 lead and then Phillips showing some real savvy bricked the second shot just hard enough to force the Jets to rebound and launch a game winning three. The shot that followed dropped predictably short to leave Robbie Peers and his side victorious and back in the title race should they manage to put a real run together and other sides start to slip up. Chez Marks made 5/6 from outside in his 27 points. Terrance Simmons also made 5 treys in his 20. Mike New had 12 points and 6 boards. Lynard Stewart 22 and 3. However, game MVP was Sullivan Phillips with 13 Points, 11 Rebounds and 7 assists in an all round performance capped by making the game winning shot. Report by Jack Yoemanson |
Saturday January 28th DMU Leicester Riders 63 (18, 33, 45) Noray Properties London 70 Towers (14, 34, 52) This was the third time these sides had met at John Sandford in Leicester and on the previous two games Robbie Peers side had come out victorious. It was also the third time the Towers had bought about a mid-game recovery having started the game with real sluggishness. Riders chose to sit Robert Reed on the bench starting with a five of Anthony McHenry, Steve Bucknall, Darren Mills, Tony Holley and Ryan Huntley whilst Robbie Peers lined up with his usual five of Stewart, Arinze, Phillips, Simmons and Marks. The Riders gained control of the ball from the opening tip off and made a score off the first possession, but the Towers quickly countered through Arinze. The first real break of the game came with the scores level at 6 - 6 when Deginald Erskin helped himself to eight points in a 10 - 4 run to take the Riders 16 - 9 to the good and with the final possession of the quarter coming down below the Riders basket, Chez Marks found himself open in the corner to nail a three over Bucknall to cut the lead down to 18 - 14. The Riders began the period much better with an 11 - 5 run to take the lead into double figures at 29 - 19 and begin to look comfortable in their stride. That, however, would be as good as it got for the home side as the Towers responded with a 13 - 2 run to give them their first lead of the game at 31 - 31, before a Niki Arinze dunk took his side into the locker room one point to the good at 34 - 33. Having dragged themselves back into the game during the second period, the Towers started the second half looking to kick on and take the game away from the home side. Something which was greatly aided by a 14 - 4 burst taking the Towers out to their largest lead of the game at 48 – 37. However, Leicester refused to go down without a fight going on an 8 - 1 run of their own to cut the lead down to just four points at 49 – 45. By the time the buzzer came to end the third stanza, the Towers had a 52 - 45 lead which they would attempt to defend during the final period. The Towers began the final period with the ball and gained the first score of the period through Lynard Stewart and again began a run aimed at taking the game away from the Riders. This time they were to be more successful as Marks, Simmons and Phillips all helped themselves to treys as the Towers pulled the lead out to double figures with 2 minutes to go. Riders again led by Erskin and McHenry pulled back to single figures. However, it was not to be enough for the home side as Robbie Peers’ men ran out 70 - 63 winners in a low scoring game between two sides who found scoring reasonably difficult as shown by Ryan Huntley scoring only 2 points during the game. Whether scoring was made difficult by stellar defence or bad shooting is something open to debate. However, one area where Towers supporters can not complain at all is at the foul line as Marks, New and Stewart all shot over 50% from the stripe. Mike New was the Towers top scorer against his old club with 15 points and 9 board. Lynard Stewart and Chez Marks had 14 each, Terrance Simmons had 13, Niki Arinze 6. Sullivan Phillips had one of his lesser games, made worse by two silly turnovers both on travels which came with the shot clock low. Riders were led by Anthony McHenry with 20 points. Towers are next at home in a repeat of Sunday's game to Chester before making their first trip to the Spectrum centre in Surrey to meet the Guildford Heat on Thursday 9th February. Report by Jack Yoemanson |
Sunday January 22nd Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks 96 (29, 44, 71) Noray Properties London Towers 81 (22, 41, 60) Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks remain eight- points clear at the top of the BBL after a convincing 96-81 home win against Noray Properties London Towers. Rocks Rob Yanders was the star scoring 32-points, including eight three-point shots. After a close first half which the Rocks shaded 44 - 41 an 11 - 1 burst midway through the third period put the home team in the clear. Towers fought back but could get no closer than 77-69 in the fourth quarter. Arinze top scored for Towers with 22 while Joseph on 25 backed up Yanders for the Rocks. Report from the BBL |
Friday January 20th Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles 91 (25, 46, 66) Noray Properties London Towers 90 (18, 42, 64) With coach Fab Flournoy pacing the Metro Radio Arena car park because of suspension it was left to the returning Charles Smith to lead Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles to 91-90 win over Noray Properties London Towers. Smith led all scorers with 26-points and he combined with England international Andrew Sullivan to block a last second Terrance Simmons shot which would have won the match for London. The two clubs were level in fourth position before the match and there was little to separate them throughout. Newcastle led 25 - 18 after the end of the first but this was whittled down to 46 - 42 at the half and then 66 - 64 at the end of the third after leading 64 - 53 at one stage. With the Eagles 84 - 83 ahead the teams exchanged three-pointers up to 90 - 89 in the home side’s favour. The impressive Simmons then scored one of two free throws to tie the game at 90 - 90 before Sullivan converted his second free throw with four seconds remaining for the crucial score. Sullivan hit 25 to support Smith with Jeremy Hyatt and TJ Walker on 16. Simmons led London on 21. Report from the BBL |
Saturday January 14th Genesis Brighton Bears 87 (18, 38, 60) Noray Properties London Towers 100 (23, 48, 68) London drew level with Sheffield and Newcastle with a convincing victory over Genesis Brighton Bears and thanks to some inspired shooting from Chez Marks. London opened the score with 3 points from Simmons they enjoyed the better of the opening quarter establishing a 5 point lead at 18-23. The Towers extended their lead to 13 with a 4-12 run and took a ten point lead going into the lockers, with the scores at 38-48 at half time. After a quiet 3rd period, London opened the final stanza with a 2-11 tear and the Bears responded with a 12-4 run bringing the scores to 72-81 with 6 minutes to go. 7 points for McGee had the game poised at 85-92 before the Towers secured a further 6 points to put the game out of reach. Chez Marks lead all scorers with a phenomenal 37 personal points for the Towers, whilst Williams added 27 for Brighton. Report from the BBL |
Sunday January 8th Westfield Sharks Sheffield 81 (21, 43, 64) Noray Properties London Towers 97 (32, 55, 74) Just like the old cliché about buses coming along in twos, it appears that wins at Sheffield take the same route, After waiting 10 years to beat the Sharks in the steel city, the Towers have now been successful on each of their last two visits to Ponds Forge. However, if last season's win had been close, tonight's was a much more vintage performance from Robbie Peers' side still awaiting the arrival of Michael New into the country. Towers lined up with a starting five of Terrance Simmons, Chez Marks, Niki Arinze, Sullivan Phillips and former Shark favourite Lynard Stewart, whilst the home side started with Blake Shelton, Ed Cage, Iain McKinney, Richard Windle and former Tower Sterling Davis. Stewart beat Cage to the tip and gave the Towers the first offence of the game which Stewart duly converted to give his side the lead. After a Sharks miss, it was the turn of Niki Arinze to add to the scoreline making it 4 - 0 before Richard Windle replied for the home side with a long range three cutting the defecit to one at 4 - 3. That was to be as good as it got for the home side as they began to pull away, extending the lead into double figures on at least two occasions and no matter how Sheffield fought back they were to have no answer to the Londoners who finished the period with a 9 - 4 run to give them an 11 point lead at the end of the first period at 31 - 21. Throughout the period, the Towers had managed to keep Sterling Davis quiet whilst all five Towers had hit the score sheet including Simmons with a three and lovely high arcing jumper to finish the period's scoring. Sheffield began the second period trying to drag themselves back into contention but failed miserably as Arinze helped himself to the first six points of the period to extend the lead to 16 points at 37 - 21, before Sheffield helped themselves to a run of their own cutting the lead back to 42 - 32. However, the Towers were not to be stopped as another 7 straight points extended the lead to 49 - 32 and allowed the Towers a mediocum of comfort going towards the break. This lead was to prove invaluable as Arinze picked up his third foul in the half which allowed the visitors to drop into a zone defence and protect the American from picking up foul number four before the period was out. By the time half time came it was a 12 point lead for the visitors with a lead of 55 - 43. The third period saw the home side launch a fight back of sorts as they started the period 18 - 9 cutting the lead down to just three. However, a Marks three allowed the Towers to begin a run of 10 - 0 to extend the lead back to comfort again at 13. Throughout the third the game ebbed and flowed as the teams traded blows, but the home side seemed unable to make a strong enough impression on their visitors with the lead never dropping below six points. The third period also saw two major calls on either side which could potentially have changed the game had they gone against the Towers. On the first possession Sharks stand in point guard Blake Shelton was called for his fourth personal foul forcing him to the bench to be replaced by Stedroy Baker before the next play saw Arinze pick up his fourth sending him to the bench to be replaced by Sam Betts. Of the two replacements Betts was to fare the better picking up a rebound and turnover in his near six minutes of play. The fourth period started with Towers possession. However, it was the home side who started stronger to come back to 79 - 72 with just over six minutes to play. Then came the call which finished the game for the Towers. Richard Windle was called for a foul with just two seconds on the shot clock which sent his coach Peter Scantlebury into a fit of rage which was enough to earn him a technical foul from Steve Lawes giving the Towers four shots and possession. Simmons drained one of his two for the foul before Chez Marks drained both shots for the ?T? before to add insult to injury, Lynard Stewart threw down a dunk to cost the home side 5 points for their troubles and allowing the Towers to extend their lead to 12 at 84 - 72. From then on the Towers were fouled putting them messrs. Simmons, Marks and Arinze at the line. They were to connect on all but one free throw before Arinze fouled out with 11 seconds to go in the ball game, leaving the home side two shots which eventually cut the lead to 96 - 81 which would be the final score when the horn sounded to leave the Towers successful for the second time in the weekend. The visitors were led by Niki Arinze with 24 points, Chez Marks contributed 19, Lynard Stewart and Terrence Simmons 18, Sullivan Phillips also contributed double figures and Sam Betts made one point and one rebound in his six minutes. Sheffield were led by Sterling Davis with 20, Eddie Cage had 19, which would have been much more had he not missed a wide open dunk and countless other plays and Richard Windle contributed 16 to the Sheffield cause. The Towers now travel away to Brighton on Saturday night for a meeting with the Bears and former Tower Jerry Williams at the Triangle Centre. The game is now an 8pm tip off and not the 7pm advertised. The only other news is that the Towers away game at Newcastle is now arranged for Monday April 3rd at 7:30pm. This is the game that was moved for the BBL Cup semi finals. Report by Jack Yoemanson |
Saturday January 7th Noray Properties London Towers 79 (26 , 46, 67) Newcastle Eagles 72 (28, 40, 55) Noray Properties London Towers scored a sweet victory over recent BBL Cup FInal opponents at Crystal Palace NSC this evening. The starting five for Towers were Chez Marks, Lynard Stewart, Niki Arinze, Terrance Simmons and Sullivan Phillips. Towers won the tip and scored the first points of the game. Chez Marks put up a long three a the play went end to end as Towers edged ahead by 4. However, Newcastle fought straight back with a 7 point run to lead by 3 at12 - 9. Towers then went on a short run of their own to take the advantage, which included a spectacular dunk from Niki Arinze, until a long three from Hyatt put the Eagles back ahead by 1. Despite another long three from Chez, after some frantic end to end play, the quarter ended with the Eagles ahead by 2. Newcastle held on to their fragile lead at the start of the second but with 4 minutes to go, we had a level ball game. A dunk from Terrance Simmons put Towers ahead but on the next play, Eagles were level again. Towers then pushed ahead to lead by 4 as a technical foul was called on Jeremy Hyatt as Towers pushed ahead by 5 at 41 - 36, Sullivan Phillips scored a three to help Towers keep the advantage, finishing the quarter ahead by 6. The second half started with possession for the Towers and a 3 point play from Lynard Stewart. Towers stretched their lead out to 8 at 53 - 45, but back to back threes from TJ Walker, brought the Eagles back to within 2. A technical foul was called on Newcastle's Fab Flournoy as Towers edged out again with a 12 - 2 run helped by Terrance Simmons who put up a three on the run to beat the clock to go 13 points up at 66 - 53. The quarter ended with Towers ahead by 12. As could be expected, Newcastle came out strong for the final stanza chipping away out the Towers' lead, Once again however, it was a three from Chez Marks that restored the difference to 12 points at 73 - 61 with 5.59 to play. With just over three minutes left in the game, Newcastle pressed again to get back within 7 and with 1.38 left, within 5. With 19 seconds left, Robbie Peers called time out and Towers were ahead by 7. A lead they held until the end of the game. Report by Phil Redman |
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