15th December 2007 Marshall MK Lions 91-80 Guildford Heat

BBL Cup Semi-Final Match Preview

vs.

Marshall MK Lions joined the Newcastle Eagles as the finalists in the BBL Cup after a 91-80 victory over the defending Cup holders, the Poujoulat Heat Guildford at the K2 Arena in Crawley on Saturday evening.

Both sides traded baskets throughout the opening quarter, but a 10-4 burst from the Lions gave them the early advantage at 15-8. The Heat steadily closed the gap, but still trailed by three points at 25-22 at the end of the first quarter.

The second period saw the Heat tie the game at 38-38 midway through the period, but the Lions immediately responded with a 19-4 tear to take the score out to 57-42. An E.J. Harrison three-pointer on the half-time buzzer took the Heat into the locker rooms trailing by twelve points at 57-45.

The second half saw the Heat close the deficit to six points at 59-53 off the back of an 8-2 start to the third period, but a three-pointer from Tony Windless and two from Yorick Williams set the Lions off on a 13-4 tear to take the score out to 72-57. A 7-1 finish to the third period for the Heat trimmed the deficit back to nine points at 73-64 going into the final stanza.

In the final quarter, the Heat opened with the first seven points to get back to within two points at 73-71. The Lions responded with eight of the next ten points to take the score out to 81-73, before the Heat got back to within four at 81-77 with 3:08 remaining. The Lions broke the game open with an 8-0 to take the score out to 89-77 with 1:09 left in the game, and then held their nerve to secure the victory from the foul-line.

Williams led the scoring in the game with 26 points for the Lions, while Tony Dorsey led the Heat scoring with 20.

Stats Corner: Lions Heat