Glasgow Rocks v Esh Group Eagles Newcastle
Where and when:
Emirates Arena, 5.00pm Sunday 29 November
Summary:
Glasgow Rocks have come as close to any team to ending Esh Group Eagles Newcastle’s historic start to the season, and will get another shot on Sunday.
Eagles outlasted the Scottish club 83-78 in their BBL Cup Quarter-Final last month, and have continued their winning run since then, making it to an 11-0 mark in the BBL Championship.
Rocks meanwhile have split their four games since then, going without a game last weekend before facing Sheffield Sharks on Friday.
Eagles are also in action against Manchester Giants on Friday before this game.
Last time they met:
Esh Group Eagles Newcastle 83 Glasgow Rocks 78 (BBL Cup Quarter-Final, Sport Central, 30 October 2015)
Form:
Rocks: LLWLLW
Eagles: WWWWWW
Three Points:
- Eagles have won all of their 12 games so far this season, doing so by an average of 18 points
- Rocks’ last victory against Eagles was in April 2012
- Joe Chapman had 23 points and 10 rebounds when these sides met last month
What they say:
Rocks forward Will Hall: “The Cup game [against Newcastle] was a tough game to lose, as it came down to the last minute. We need to take care of the basketball on Sunday. We had too many turnovers in Newcastle and lacked a little composure in the final quarter. Other than that, we just need to play our style of game with confidence.
“I don’t really consider breaking their winning streak any more of a motivating factor than wanting to win any other game. When all said and done, it’s just another basketball game.”
Eagles forward Andrew Thomson: “Glasgow are a balanced team and the more they play together, the stronger they get. We have to be able to defend their movement and pick-and-roll better, I think that will be a key focus of ours.
“It’s never an easy place to play when going to the Emirates so we’re expecting a battle on Sunday. I’m sure they’ve been waiting for this game since the Cup Quarter-Final.”
Esh Group Eagles Newcastle v Manchester Giants
Where and when:
Sport Central, 7.30pm Friday 27 November
Summary:
There were 38 points between Esh Group Eagles Newcastle and Manchester Giants when they met less than two weeks ago, leaving Yorick Williams’ men with plenty of room for improvement ahead of Friday’s rematch.
Eagles’ incredible start to the season shows no signs of slowing down, as they extended their perfect league record to 11 games with victory against Worcester Wolves last time out.
Giants, however, are enduring a torrid run of just one win in 11 games, having fallen to Cheshire Phoenix last Sunday.
Last time they met:
Manchester Giants 81 Esh Group Eagles Newcastle 119 (BBL Championship, Trafford Soccerdome, 15 November 2015)
Form:
Eagles: WWWWWW
Giants: LWLLLL
Three Points:
- Eagles are scoring 10 points-per-game more than any other team
- Giants have not beaten Eagles since returning to the BBL in 2012
- Eagles have scored more than 100 points in each of their last four games against Giants
What they say:
Eagles forward Andrew Thomson: “Giants play at a high tempo and like to play physical. They’re one of the smaller teams in the league when it comes to size, but they use that to their benefit as they can spread the floor and use the space with driving lanes for there guards.
“It’s a tough cover as you don’t want to get into a scoring race with this team, so it will be key for use to dictate the tempo from the start.”
Giants guard/forward Ingus Bankevics: “Newcastle are a really good team, all their players know what they need to do. They know how to play offence and defence and it’s hard to play against them, they punish all your mistakes.
“We cannot let them get easy shots, and second-chance points, and we have to keep our turnovers down. We need to play defence at 101%, but we know it will be tough.”
