Dave Ryan reports…
Levett Essex Leopards will travel to Leicester Warriors on Saturday looking for a fourth straight victory following two thrilling home wins over the weekend.
Solent Kestrels were beaten 98-93 in an overtime epic at Harlow Leisurezone on Saturday evening, and just over 18 hours later the Big Cat collected their first win of the campaign at the Brentwood Centre as Bradford Dragons were beaten 83-79.
The changes the Big Cats made to their roster in early November seem to have paid dividends and they are now up to eighth in the Division One table as they continue to look for a top four finish and home court advantage in the play-offs.
Steve Ogunjimi’s side will face a Warriors team who are 12th in the table with a 2-7 record but with a pair of American import players they have showed that they can match any team on their day with wins against Solent and Westminster as well as an early-season Trophy victory against high-flying Loughborough.
The Big Cats had narrow victories in both games against Karl Brown’s team last season although it took overtime at the Brentwood Centre before they wrapped up a 78-74 victory.
Following Saturday’s trip to the midlands Leopards wrap up 2017 with the visits of London Lituanica to Harlow on Saturday December 10 and Lancashire Spinners to Brentwood on Sunday December 18.
On Saturday, former England international Mike Martin rolled back the years with a massive 34 point, ten rebound double-double as Ogunjimi’s team picked up a league victory from an excellent advert for Division One basketball.
The new-look Big Cats allowed a seven point lead with three minutes of regulation time slip away but took control in the extra period for their first home league win of the campaign.
Darrell Bethune marked his home debut with 21 points, eight assists and five rebounds, while AJ Roberts added 16 points, five boards and five assists. Dougie Bennett finished with 12 points while another home debutant, Perry Lawson, had seven assists.
The Big Cats overcame a slow start before five straight Bethune points tied the game at 22 going into the first break and they looked likely to only trail by one at half-time before R Williams hit a triple on the buzzer to give Solent a 50-46 lead going into the locker room.
The game remained tight in the third period but a trey from Bethune and a three point play by Martin helped the home side go into the fourth period with a 69-62 lead.
Leopards never trailed in the fourth quarter and Martin’s basket with three minutes left looked to have sealed it, only for Solent to reply with a 7-0 run to tie the game at 82 to force an extra period.
Tosin Oyelese opened the overtime period with a lay-up off Bethune’s assist and Leopards led throughout with three-pointers from Martin and Roberts helping them take control and wrap up the win.
It wasn’t any less nerve-shredding at Brentwood the following day as Dragons were eventually slain in another tense game. The Big Cats never trailed after the mid-stage of the opening period but Bradford produced a fighting performance to take the game to the wire.
Bethune and Martin again led the way with 21 and 19 points respectively and collecting nine assists apiece, with Martin also chipping in with four assists. Roberts finished with his best numbers of the season with a 16 point, ten rebound double-double, adding five assists, with Oyelese adding nine points and Hayes eight.
After the previous night’s exertions, Leopards predictably started slowly despite a Roberts triple, but a Bethune trey launched a 9-0 run open a 14-8 lead with seven minutes gone, and the hosts never trailed again.
Bradford replied with five points but the home side closed out the period with six unanswered points to lead 20-13 at the first break.
That lead evaporated as Dragons opened the second period with a 9-2 run to tie the game only to see Bethune hit seven straight points and Oyelese five as Leopards replied with a 12-2 tear, and they went into the locker room with a 38-33 lead.
Six straight Hayes points kept the Big Cats ahead early in the second half and with Lawson draining from long range the home side went into the final break with a 63-58 lead.
Only Martin’s four points troubled the scorers for Leopards in the opening five minutes of the fourth period and Matt Gooding hit three straight triples to tie the game at 67.
Bethune broke the drought with a pair of lay-ups, and Dragons never got closer than two points again before Roberts wrapped up the win at the foul line.
