Essex top Yorkshire Dragons in BCB action
The Rebels sealed victory in their return to British Championship Basketball this calendar year with a 104-92 win over the Yorkshire Dragons.
With both teams placed sixth and seventh in the BCB league standings before the game, a victory for the Rebels allows them to continue pushing up the table.
Similar to the Women’s game two hours earlier, the Men’s side fought in an end-to-end opening quarter of Basketball, with both sides trading buckets. The Rebels showed their potency from range, with Miles Brown, Tom Child and Kyron Martin all scoring two three-pointers apiece in the opening ten minutes.
Some great defensive work from Michael Amako forced the Dragons into turning over possession three times late in the first quarter, which allowed the Rebels to start the second with the score reading 31-22.
The Rebels survived a gritty second quarter, which saw the Dragons begin their fight back to shorten the deficit. Nick Lewis proved to be a problem for the home side, as he chalked up nine points in the quarter, including two efforts worth three points.
As the visitors missed both chances from the free throw line late in the half, the scoreline read 48-43 as the first half ended and put a stop to the visitors building any more momentum.
A tense third quarter saw the intensity resume after the halftime break, with both sides refusing to budge. Miles Brown continued his run of sensational form by racking up twelve points, including back-to-back three-pointers.
Despite the Rebels leading by 11 points at one stage, a late fightback from the Dragons – including Corey Johnson producing a three-pointer of his own – saw the scoreline read 81-79 heading into the final quarter.
The Rebels put in a performance to remember to seal the win in the final quarter, with the final score 104-92. Captain Tom Child showed exceptional quality by tallying up four three-pointers in a row to put the Rebels firmly out of reach.
Victory puts the Rebels on a four game win streak ahead of a trip away to the Derby Trailblazers next Saturday.
TOP PERFORMERS
Essex Rebels:
- Miles Brown: 30 points | 6 rebounds | 10 assists
- Tom Child: 23 points | 3 rebounds | 6 assists
- Kyron Martin: 18 points | 5 rebounds | 1 assist
Yorkshire Dragons:
- Corey Johnson : 30 points | 4 rebounds | 2 assists
- Jordan Whelan: 6 points | 7 rebounds | 1 assist
- Nick Lewis: 15 points | 3 rebounds | 2 assists
By Nicholas Melton
