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Division II.1
Galaxy Walkers became the first team to lose with home court as they lost again to Doncaster Hawks. The Walkers took their first league defeat to Doncaster a few weeks ago and the Hawks found a way to beat them once again, this time 80-66.

A game winner from SG Jader de Jesus gave kotwa a 101-100 victory over new jersey2. New jersey2 were led by 31 points from PF Massimo Passanti but it wasn’t enough to overcome 7 kotwa players scoring double digits.

Kotwa will now face Doncaster Hawks with home court advantage. Kotwa have predominantly used outside scoring throughout the season whereas Doncaster are usually lead by their bigs inside. It should be a good battle between the teams. Kotwa won the season series 2-0.

In the great 8, both games were comfortable won by the home teams. The Detroit Pistons I beat Scunthorpe Devils 114-80 with 4 players scoring 16+points. Scunthorpe were led by former NY U21 player Greg Monk who scored 27 points alongside 9 rebounds from the PG spot.

Hurstead Hustlers beat Toral Castro 104-83 and were carried by PF Zheng Ruibin who scored 29 points on only 15 shots. PG Paolo Quaranta went 4-4 from 3 to add 22 points in the win.

The season series between Detroit Pistons I and Hurstead Hustlers was tied with the home team picking up the wins. Detroit are looking to end their run in division II and Hurstead are the next team in their way.

Division II.2
The 21-1 MexicanTaxiDrivers got an easy first round win as JA Miami failed to turn up for the game.

The second seed T20 Cricketers weren’t so lucky as they won a hard fought battle against Borac Basket. 6 of T20’s 7 active players scored double figures in the win and it proved too much for Borac to win.

Over in the great 8, the Roaring Lions were able to beat Porzigod 75-62 despite key player Simon Redding missing through injury. SG Govardhan Sengupta scored 20 points for the Lions in the Redding’s absence. As of Thursday Redding’s status is still out but he will be working hard to be fit for the conference finals.

Heat Culture were able to out-score Gophers in a high scoring game that finished 137-120. Both teams scored 19 3 pointers each but Heat Culture were more efficient, scoring their 19 3’s in 12 less shots. SF Samuel Braga Nunes top scored with 35 points, shooting 14-24FG and 6-93FG.

The Roaring Lions need to beat Heat Culture in their quest to reach the EBBL as with Galaxy Walkers crashing out, they need to win the title in order to earn promotion. The Lions did beat Heat Culture both times during the season and will hope to do it again, but Redding’s injury status will be a worry for them.

Division II.3
PONTIOPOYLA were able to hold off SC Bastia;s permitter threat as they were abel to pick up the 123-103 win. SC Bastia’s perimeter three scored a combined 81 points. PONTIOPOYLA were very efficient with their play as they shot 52.5%FG, 55.6% 3FG and 100% FT as they scored 123 points. SG Cenan Tanner top scored for them with 30 points, with backup SF Slobodan Dubakovic adding 29 points off the bench.

2nd seed Nutwood Nets eased their way to victory against Coventry Phoenix thanks to a 33- 16 first quarter. The Nets were led with 27 points by SG Waldek Beska while PF Morten Andersen and PG Oliver Pion added double-doubles. Phoenix’s star man SF Ling To Wai had 23 points on 13 shots before fouling out.

Nutwood Nets now go on to battle PONTIOPOYLA in the conference finals. The season series was tied at 1-1. Both teams are looking to make it to the finals.

Team Nook continued their dominant season with a 117-66 win over the short-handed Scarface. Scarface only fielded 4 contracted players which gave Team Nook an easy game. PG Jeffrey Georgas scored 42 points in the win as Team Nook stay unbeaten.

The MILF Hunters didn’t have as easy of a game against Kauno Zalgiris but were able to pick up a 123-108 win. SG Zsigmond Sebestyen scored 7 3’s on his way to 31 points, SF Andras Joo added 22 in the win.

MILF Hunters will l0ok to spoil Team Nook’s unbeaten season in the conference finals as they look to bounce back to the EBBL at the first time of asking. Team Nook beat MILF Hunters pretty comfortable in both season games but MILF Hunters weren’t at full strength for either game.

Division II.4
St Purple & Greens crushed 4th seed Club Deportivo 104-58 as they make a statement on their quest for the EBBL. England U21 player Francis Padilla had a game to remember as he led the way with 22 points and 16 rebounds. He was well supported by former U21 player Clint Franks who added 19 points in 27 minutes.

The Camden Kings got their revenge for the final day loss as they beat Whetstone Wizards 103-87. The inside duo of PF Servet Suphan and C Giedris Grobovas both had double-doubles in the win. A 4th quarter effort from the Wizards made the final score look respectable but they were well beaten by the 2nd seed.

The St Purple & Greens will hope that home court advantage they earned on the final day will give them the edge against Camden Kings in the conference finals. The season series was drawn 1-1 with the home team claiming the win on those occasions.

Gauson shocked CWA Fury as the more recent EBBL team picked up a 97-86 win. 40 points from SG Miguel Hayos outplayed CWA’s C Sandor Tandary 21 point, 20 rebound double-double. Gauson were only one of two teams to win away from home in the first round.

The final division II first round matchup saw 2nd seed Pleven North End ease to a 101-81 victory over TheBeasts. SF Fang Congjie top scored with 31 points as 5 Pleven players scored double figures in the win.

Veteran Gauson will next face Pleven North End as they look to provide another shock result. Pleven did sweep the season series 2-0 but Gauson will hope the underdog momentum can push them to the finals.

Great stuff! There’s a too many division III leagues for me to cover those as well, especially when most of the leagues are mostly bot teams.

Here is the conference finals roundup.

EBBL
In the battle of the 2 most successful (active) English franchises, Tide of Fire beat LIDLTallfellas 97-85. PF Muoi Le scored 32 points for Tide of Fire on an efficient 11-17 shooting. SF Su Shijia scored 26 for the Tallfellas but it wasn’t enough to overcome the home court advantage. Tide of Fire head on to the EBBL finals as they look to win their 2nd consecutive and 14th all time EBBL title.

In the great 8, Hope Springs overcame at 10 point half time deficit to defeat London Whales 96-93. The Whales’ good start was derailed as England NT and top scorer PF Kenny MacLaverty went down injured in the first quarter. He had 10 points in 7 minutes at that point. His backup, Gintaras Dipartas, came on to top score for the Whales with 24 points. Hope Springs were led by their perimeter duo PG Ctibor Greso and SF Przemyslaw Gasecki who scored 24 and 22 point respectively. Hope Springs go back to the EBBL finals for the 2nd season in a row.

The EBBL finals sees a repeat of last seasons finals as Tide of Fire face Hope Springs. Last season Tide of Fire were able to win the finals 2-0, Hope Springs will battle hard to make sure that doesn’t happen again. The sole matchup this season ended in a 82-73 victory for Tide of Fire.

In the relegation battles, home court proved dominant again as all 3 home teams were able to win and send the series’s to a decisive game 3. Bournemouth Drunkers picked up a 100-88 win over Cambois Donkeys, Bromley-By-Bow beat Stinkilemons 110-94 and Bethnal Green Erks defeated Durham Wasps 85-73.

Division II.1
Division II.1 saw both conference finals go to overtime. The big 8 tie saw the 2nd seed kotwa face off against 4th seed Doncaster Hawks in what was a battle between outside and inside offensive teams, in which the outside focused team came out on top in double overtime. The final score a big 156-144 in favour of kotwa. Hawks coach Jakubb will feel let down as their team had 2 opportunities to win the game, firstly in regulation as former NT PF Jody Hobbs missed 2 free throws with the score tied and no time remaining which sent the game to overtime. Following that, in the first overtime period C Chung Yun xian missed from close range to win. The Hawks tired and we’re unable to stop the offensive onslaught from kotwa who scored 27 points in the final 5mins to win. Guard duo PG Andrey Roslyakov and SG Nordin Harris combined to score 82 points to lead the way in the game.

Over in the great 8, the Detroit Pistons I quest for the EBBL again comes to an end as they fell 123-120 to Hurstead Hustlers in overtime. 4 Hustler’s players scored 20+ points in a team effort to get the away win.

The finals matchup sees both 2 seeds face off, with kotwa having home court advantage. Last season they lost to eventual winners Panathinaikos Bristol in the conference finals, they will be hoping this season is their title to claim. Kotwa did beat Hurstead Hustlers away in the only game between the teams this season. Kotwa are looking to win promotion to the EBBL for the first time in their 45 season history. The Hustlers are also looking to reach the top flight for the first time.

Division II.2
After a walkover to get to the conference finals, MexicanTaxiDriver faced T20 Cricketers. Despite losing the first quarter, MexicanTaxiDriver were able to pick up a 107-93 victory. 6 of 7 MexicanTaxiDriver players scored double figures, led by a 25 point, 18 rebound double double by C Cyril Poli. The team effort was too much for T20 Cricketers to keep up with.

NT wing Simon Redding was able to recover in time to suit up for Roaring Lions and scored 17 points on only 9 shots as the Lions head back to the playoff finals after last season’s disappointment. SG Jerome Wiseman scored a game high 26 points but Heat Culture were outclassed in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and fell to a 93-78 defeat.

In arguably the most competitive division II league, MexicanTaxiDriver hold home court advantage, which they were able to take advantage of in the matchup earlier in the season, but Roaring Lions on paper have more fire power and may be considered favourites by some even without home court advantage. MexicanTaxiDriver can have some comfort in that if they do lose, their 21-1 record may be enough to earn them the final promotion spot.

Division II.3
The Nutwood Nets provided a shock as they beat top seed PONTIOPOYLA 127-118 away from home to reach the playoff finals. The Nets outside trio of PG Oliver Pion, SG Waldek Beska and SF Andrzej Pietowski combined to score 80 points with C Leslie Lynn adding 19 points. PONTIOPOYLA shot 53.1% in the game but the Nets shot even better at 56.8%FG and 57.9%3FG to win the game.

In the great 8, Team Nook maintained their unbeaten league run as they locked in on the defensive end to limit MILF Hunters to only 60 points. Team Nook won every quarter on their way to a 24 point victory

Team Nook should be fairly confident heading in to the finals having now reached a 24 game unbeaten league run, and Nutwood Nets coach doesn’t look to be as active. Team Nook won the league matchup this season 97-71. Neither team has ever reached the EBBL. Team Nook have a guaranteed promotion spot due to their division best 22-0 record.

Division II.4
30 points from PF Clint Franks was enough to send the St Purple & Greens to the playoff finals as they beat Camden Kings 104-88. Camden Kings had too many turnovers (17) which allowed the Purple & Greens to shoot 13 more shots which proved to be the difference.

4th seed Gauson have set up an underdog run as they have again defied home court advantage to reach the finals after beating Pleven North End 106-92. 7 Gauson players scored double digits in the win in a compete team effort as 11 players were played in the game. Pleven North End were led by PG Dorde Milosavljevic who scored 33 points but he had little back up to compete in the game.

Gauson we’re relegated from the EBBL last season and are looking for a first time return to the top flight, while the St Purple & Greens have never played in the EBBL. Gauson did win the only matchup 116-109 at the Purple & Greens but both teams have made significant additions since that game.

Game 1s of the finals and EBBL relegation game 3s in the books… spoiler home court advantage appears to be pretty strong.

EBBL
In what might be considered one of the best EBBL finals games ever, Tide of Fire just managed to maintain home court advantage after a double overtime win over Hope Springs in game 1.

SF Yury Loginov scored 41 points on 15-26 shooting led the way in game. SG Victor Cullen had a game to forget as he shot only 6-30FG and went 0-15 from 3. C Zdzislaw Omyszkiewicz came up big down the stretch with big baskets in the overtime periods to keep the game alive for the 13 time champions. He finished with 18 points and 17 rebounds on 9-12 shooting.

Hope Springs had more balanced scoring output with 5 players in double figures, led by PG Ctibor Greso with 27 points. Hope Springs will need to win game 2 at home to keep their title dreams alive but will likely be without starting C Andreas Storksen as he picked up an injury late in the game which is a big blow for them.

Hopefully game 2 will be just as exciting!

The home court trend continued in the relegation battles as once again all 3 home teams won their decisive game 3s.

Firstly, Cambois Donkeys retained their EBBL status with a 101-83 victory over Bournemouth Drunkers. SG Philip Thomas shot 13-18 on his way to 33 points in the win.

A combined 72 points for dynamic duo PG Magdaleno Banuelos and SG Dallis Brona gave Stinkilemons a 106-96 win over Bromley-By-Bow.

Durham Wasps used their strong defensive pedigree limiting Bethnal Green Erks to only 70 points as they picked up a 21 point win. The Wasps were led by England NT PF Hank Easton who had 20 points and 18 rebounds.

Cambois Donkeys, Stinkilemons and Durham Wasps win their relegation series’s and retain the top division status.

Division II.1
In a close fought contest, kotwa picked up a 114-103 win over Hurstead Hustlers in game 1 of the finals to maintain home court advantage. Each quarter was pretty close other than the 2nd quarter which kotwa won by 9 points to give them a lead which they were able to maintain throughout the game.

Kotwa were led by the trio of PG Andrey Roslyakov, PF Vajnislau Labuta and SG Nordin Harris who combined to score 73 points. Labuta also added 11 rebounds for an impressive double double. C Grigorakis Yiantsios dominated the glass with 18 rebounds, including 6 offensive.

SG Gleb Kirshin top scored for the Hustlers with 21 points on only 12 shots. PF Zheng Ruibin recorded a 20 point 11 rebound double double in the loss.

Kotwa take the first step towards the EBBL but the Hustlers are still right in the series as they head back to home court for game 2.

Division II.2
The MexicanTaxiDriver used a huge 36-18 4th quarter to comeback and win game 1 of the finals 101-94. Roaring Lions star SF Simon Redding fouled out after playing only 26 minutes which may have cost the Lions the win, but full credit to MexicanTaxiDriver pulling off the comeback.

Three players scored 20 points each for MexicanTaxiDriver, as well as two more players adding 19 and 17 points in what was a full 6 man team effort.

The Lions were held to only 37.5% shooting for the game and a poor 17.6% shooting from 3. Despite fouling out early, Redding top scored for the Lions with 18 points and was +24 before his exit. But that is clearly when the game changed as they went on to lose by 7 points, a 31 point swing. The Lions offence dried up in the 2nd half as they were limited to only 35 points, compared to 59 points in the first half.

Game 2 shapes up to be another epic battle as the Lions will be desperate to tie the series and battle their way to the EBBL.

Division II.3
Team Nook established their dominance in the finals with a monster 116-58 win over Nutwood Nets. Team Nook were too strong on both ends of the court and the Nets didn’t have much chance to compete in game 1.

Team Nook were led by an incredible 37 point (on 16-26 shooting), 28 rebound performance from PF Tomas Budzius. Budzius was also well supported by SG Yip Ka yiu who scored 33 points and backup C Steve Anderson who also had a big double double with 20 points and 19 rebounds. The only down note for Team Nook was starting C Marcus McClendon went down injured early on, but it does appear that he will be fit for game 2.

The one bright spark for Nutwood was 27 points from PG Oliver Pion, although his 11-31 shooting shows the woes his team faced.

It would be a miracle for Nutwood to turn round such a big defeat to win the series, but anything can happen in sports. Team Nook look on course to compete their unbeaten season.

Division II.4
The St Purple & Greens slowed Gauson’s underdog run as they won comfortably 95-78 in game 1. The Purple & Greens won the rebound battle 53-39 as three players collected double figure rebounds.

U21 England star C Francis Padilla led the way with team highs 25 points and 14 rebounds. He was supported with 18 points from SG Baldassarre Valdinoci and PF Clint Franks.

A game high 28 points from SG Miguel Hayos wasn’t enough to put Gauson in a situation to win the game. Despite the disappointing game 1 loss, experienced coach hono will be looking to win game 2 and keep the 4th seed underdog story alive.

St Purple & Greens are aiming for their first trip to the big time but Gauson will hope to throw a spanner in the works as they also look to bounce back at the first time of asking.

I feel sorry for Hope, he lost one of his best players to injury in OT... I managed to save some enth too although that win was a bit too close for comfort. My team of geriatrics is on it's last legs...

Seems another tittle kept In Vecx house!
anyways good luck In the rest of final games !