by Vlad Ionasc
Cheshire Phoenix will take on the Sheffield Sharks in their return to the EPSV following a five-game road trip.
The Nix are currently on a seven game winning streak in all competitions against the Sharks, however the visitors have started the regular season with two wins and zero losses while the hosts are yet to pick up a victory in the BBL Championship.
Cheshire will aim to snap their current six-game losing streak, while the Sharks will look for their first win over the Nix since 2019!
GAME DETAILS
Date: Sunday 21st November, 2021
Tip-off: 5:30 p.m.
Competition: BBL Championship
Where: EPSV
How to watch: Tickets available on the door / BBL Player
SHARKS SCOUTING REPORT
Atiba Lyons’ team is currently 2-0 in the BBL Championship. Both of their victories were obtained against the Manchester Giants, home and away.
The Sharks finished fourth in the ‘North’ group of the BBL Cup and crashed out of the competition in the Quarter-Final stage after they were defeated 100-to-68 by the London Lions.
The Sharks have a 3-3 record on the road, in all competitions.
Sheffield are shooting 53.2% from the field, 46.5% from deep and 80.9% from the foul line after their first two regular season games.
The Sharks are averaging 95 points-per-game on 62 field-goal attempts. They’re currently averaging the most free-throw attempts per contest (23.5).
Sheffield rank third in assists per game (23) and are joint-first in steals (10). The visitors take good care of the ball, as they’re averaging just 9.5 turnovers per game.
The Sharks also had the fewest turnovers-per-game in the BBL Cup (11.2), however their shooting percentages plummeted to 43% from the field, 28.4% from deep and 69.4% from the line over the course of nine games.
Cheshire restricted Sheffield to just 26% shooting (5-of-19) from three-point range in their last meeting at the EPSV.
American forward Kipper Nichols leads the Sharks in scoring, with 18.5 points-per-contest.
Jordan Ratinho leads his side in rebounding, with seven boards per night.
Aaron Anderson is Sheffield’s main distributor, with eight assists per game.
Former Newcastle Eagles guard Rodney Glasgow Jr. ranks second in assists-per-game, with 5.5 dimes. He’s currently shooting 66.7% from deep.
Jonathan Williams finds himself in the top-3 in scoring (15.5 points-per-game), rebounding (4 rebounds-per-game) and playmaking (2.5 assists-per-game).
KEY PLAYERS
Sheffield Sharks: Kipper Nichols — The American forward leads the Sharks in scoring after the first two games in the BBL Championship. Nichols tallied 17 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists in the last meeting between the two sides. Sheffield’s top scorer also shot 50% from the field and committed zero turnovers.
Cheshire Phoenix: Levi Bradley — The former Northern Illinois forward has enjoyed great success in the first two games the Nix have contested against the Sharks. He has already racked up 40 points on just 25 shots against Lyons’ side. Bradley has also hauled in 11 rebounds and committed zero turnovers in over 55 minutes.
COACH’S CORNER
Ben Thomas: “We have a must win game on our hands. It’s going to be tough because Sheffield have had a good start to the BBL Championship, but we know what’s expected of us and we’re confident that we can deliver a good performance today!”
NEXT HOME GAME
The Nix are next in action at the EPSV against the Newcastle Eagles in the BBL Championship on the 5th of December, with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 p.m.