BBL Team of the Week – Week 4
We reveal three debutantes and two in-form big men who get their third spot in four weeks.
Matthew Pressey (Plymouth University Raiders)
Playmaker Pressey has been a driving force for the Raiders since they shrugged off their initial sluggish start and found a much higher gear. He has been showing why Raiders’ head-coach Jay Marriott has described him as a ‘big-time’ player. The guard cut Surrey United down to size with 21 points to clinch a first appearance of the season in our select five, but it was a stunning nine assists which really cemented his place. He also came up with four rebounds and two steals to cap a fine display.
Conner Washington (Leicester Riders)
The guard also grabs his first place of the season after a superb 16 point performance for Riders as they also crushed struggling United. Washington was unstoppable at the hoop, making six of six and whilst he didn’t quite find his range from downtown, he stole the show in many other facets of the game. As well as his perfect night inside, he also had a sparkling seven rebounds, fantastic five assists and fabulous five steals to showcase Riders’ strength in depth.
Alex Owumi (Worcester Wolves)
After three weeks without a place in our line-up, the hugely influential Owumi was previously conspicuous by his absence, but now he is off the mark after a grabbing a 23 point haul against Manchester Giants in the BBL Cup. The swingman had the hot-hand all night long and torched the still winless Mancunians from long-range, sinking a stunning seven triples from ten attempts to send Wolves into the quarter-finals. Owumi also added six rebounds and three-assists in a productive night of work to keep his club rolling onward and upwards.
Darius Defoe (Esh Group Eagles Newcastle)
The Eagles’ centre is the first of two players to find himself with a Team of the Week berth for the third time this season after registering another brilliant display. He finished with a 20 point tally as Eagles ripped their old foes Glasgow Rocks to shreds at Sport Central, with Defoe making an impressive seven of ten from the field. He missed out on a terrific double-double by just one board and also continued his rich vein of passing form with another five assists, whilst also swatting two shots and grabbing two steals.
Will Creekmore (Worcester Wolves)
The Wolves’ big man is the other player to make it for a third time in just four weeks, managing to also nail down the best performance of the entire weekend for good measure. He racked up what is becoming a customary double-double by scoring 24 points and gathering 12 rebounds to shatter the cup hopes of the Giants. Perfect from the foul line and an efficient 50% from inside, Creekmore showed a thirst for defensive work too, grabbing a super four steals, finishing with a performance valuation of 30.
Off the bench: Andreas Schreiber (Worcester Wolves), Donald Robinson (Plymouth University Raiders), Rashad Hassan (Leicester Riders), Charles Smith (Esh Group Eagles Newcastle), Drew Sullivan (Leicester Riders), Victor Moses (Cheshire Phoenix), Daniel Northern (Glasgow Rocks)
