There's a certain BBL Trophy Final MVP this week and a couple of players who had such a good weekend, they met the criteria twice over.
BJ Holmes (One Health Sharks Sheffield; pictured)
Yes, it's the most apt starting point for our fabulous five as the MVP and game winner of the 2013 BBL Trophy Final takes his place in our line-up. Holmes held his nerve in front of 5,000 fans to sink the decisive free-throws which put One Health Sharks Sheffield on top of the podium and ended any prospect of a Riders clean sweep. In addition to showing his ice cool composure in crunch time, Holmes also had 25 points, mainly via some devastating perimeter shooting. He made five triples from just seven attempts and also added seven rebounds and three assists on a memorable afternoon at the Emirates Arena.
It's so often the case that players return to haunt their former clubs and this was most definitely the case for Williams who stung Cheshire Phoenix with a game-winning display for Worcester Wolves who rolled to an impressive eighth BBL Championship victory in a row. The visitors racked up a huge 121 points, of which 29 were expertly crafted by the shooting ace. He was a real thorn in the side of his ex-employers and a danger from all over the floor as Phoenix struggled to shackle him. Williams didn't just amass an excellent points contribution, he also claimed seven rebounds, dished up four assists, grabbed a steal and even come up with a rare blocked shot to secure his debut BBL Team of the Week berth.
It was an outstanding weekend for the small forward both individually and for his team. Holmes was so good that he produced two performances good enough to get into our starting five. Firstly, he was the main man in the terrific win on Tyneside against Newcastle Eagles, with 19 points, nine rebounds, six assists and three steals, but then went even better 48 hours later against Mersey Tigers. He finished with 26 points from an efficient 8 of 11 floor shooting at the hoop, knocked down a couple of triples and continued with his usually impressive all round game, by adding six rebounds, five assists four steals and two blocks.
As was the case with Travis Holmes, the Wolves forward conjured up two wonderful displays over the weekend, both worthy of inclusion in our starting five. Having been the main architect of the win last Friday against London Lions, he followed this up with another exceptional effort 24 hours later to take down Cheshire Phoenix. In fact, Ocitti came up with the best performance of the entire weekend in the BBL as he showed his shooting range with a stunning six triples from eight attempts. His 27 point haul was complimented by five assists and he completed a double-double by adding 10 rebounds for good measure.
The forward could barely miss during a real purple patch of shooting in last Sunday's comfortable home success against Mersey Tigers. It's little surprise he gets into our starting five for the third time this season, after making a terrific seven of eight from the floor on a great shooting night. Despite playing limited minutes as Heat head coach Creon Raftopoulos rotated his bench, Cricelli still managed to find a noteworthy seven rebounds, five assists and three steals to help his side move back into the top four of the BBL Championship standings.
Off The Bench - Andrew Keister (Durham Wildcats), Arturas Masiulis (Worcester Wolves), Ralph Bucci (Durham Wildcats), Gabe Haskins (Cheshire Phoenix), Rod Brown (London Lions), Charles Smith (Newcastle Eagles), Kareem Maddox (Newcastle Eagles)
Leicester Riders took another step to rebuilding their championship winning team, by announcing the return of guard Jorge Calvo(190-G-87).
The 25 year old point guard, born in Ponferrada, Spain, was a huge hit with the Rider's fans last season, with his tenacious defence and in ability to run the offence, but also for his hugely engaging manner off the court. He was the first Spaniard to win a BBL Championship [read more]
Leicester Riders took another step to rebuilding their championship winning team, by announcing the return of guard Jorge Calvo (190-G-87).
The 25 year old point guard, born in Ponferrada, Spain, was a huge hit with the Rider's fans last season, with his tenacious defence and in ability to run the offence, but also for his hugely engaging manner off the court. He was the first Spaniard to win a BBL Championship.
Calvo was very keen to return to the Jelson Homes DMU backed Riders, "From very early on with the Riders, as I came to understand the great mix of players we had, I was really keen to make Leicester more than a one year stop. I believe this is a team that can get better, and I can get better with the team."
"Playing in the BBL is a different challenge to Spain, but I think it is helping to develop my game. I will be looking to do things a little different, add some things to what I bring to the Riders, but it is really working with my team-mates and coaches that will help make the difference."
"I was also excited to see that Drew Sullivan had re-signed, because he is such an important player in our team. He and Rob (Paternostro) our coach are what make the big difference to the team, so that just reinforced my keenness to come back."
Calvo thinks Riders will have it much tougher in the BBL next season, but is looking forward to the challenge, "For sure, teams are going to be gunning for Leicester, and it will be difficult. We set a standard this season, and other teams will be out to put one over on us. But I think the Riders can get better, and particularly if we can keep most of the squad together."
Paternostro was very excited to have Calvo back, "Jorge is hugely under-rated in my opinion. He handles himself extremely well, is a very smart player, and is very much a team guy. There are a lot of decisions to make in his position on the court, particularly in terms of getting other guys involved in the offence, and that is where Jorge excels."
BBL Birmingham has today announced the name of the new professional basketball team representing the city. Saturday nights will never be the same again...... welcoming your Birmingham Knights!
Jo Aldridge, Team Director, said "We decided to run a competition to let the fans name the team and this was a standout winner with the panel. We plan to take the team live in September and are very excited about working with a number of partners to help to bring the brand to life [read more]
BBL Birmingham has today announced the name of the new professional basketball team representing the city. Saturday nights will never be the same again...... welcoming your Birmingham Knights!
Jo Aldridge, Team Director, said "We decided to run a competition to let the fans name the team and this was a standout winner with the panel. We plan to take the team live in September and are very excited about working with a number of partners to help to bring the brand to life."
The Team's management has also been busy building a number of important partnerships within the city. Today they announce the Birmingham A's Basketball Club as the team's "Official Nursery Team" and the City of Birmingham basketball club as their "Official Junior Development Partner". Coach Paul Douglas said "Ensuring an effective player pathway in the city is really important to us. We want to create a team that local young players aspire to and a simple route by which they work their way up to playing professionally. We're confident that these important relationships will help us to achieve this and we're pleased to see the sport of basketball uniting in the city."
Coach Douglas starts his campaign with trials being held at the Doug Ellis Sports Centre on the 18th and 19th May. If you would like to know more about how to take part email info@bblbirmingham.co.uk.
NIJT London: Team England roll over OKK Spars Sarajevo in Day 3 - May 11, 2013
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Team England - OKK Spars Sarajevo 78:61
Team England roll over OKK Spars Sarajevo in Day 3 of the Nike International Junior tournament in London. The hosts of the tournament posted their initial 78:61 win and finished second in Group B. OKK Spars Sarajevo also ended up with 1-2 record in the group, but finished last.
OKK Spars Sarajevo started the game better and took 23-19 after the first period. Moreover they added 21-18 rally in the second frame and led 44:37 at the halftime [read more]
Team England - OKK Spars Sarajevo 78:61
Team England roll over OKK Spars Sarajevo in Day 3 of the Nike International Junior tournament in London. The hosts of the tournament posted their initial 78:61 win and finished second in Group B. OKK Spars Sarajevo also ended up with 1-2 record in the group, but finished last. OKK Spars Sarajevo started the game better and took 23-19 after the first period. Moreover they added 21-18 rally in the second frame and led 44:37 at the halftime. The second half however was dominated only by one team, London. The latter posted 21-12 surge in the third quarter and finished the game with massive 20-5 burst. Luke Nelson (189-G-95) top-scored for the winners with 20 points and Jules DANG AKODO added 17. KAVELL BIGBY delivered 14, whilst Tyrell Isaacs (183-PG-95) had 8. Four players only scored for the Bosnian team. Aleksej Nikolic (185-G-95) poured in 25 points and Djoko Salic (209-C-95) added 20. Faris Smajlovic (199-F/C-96) brought 10, while Nedim Buza (201-SF-95) notched 6.
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