It is important that we remember how we got here and stay confident
RIDERS COACH UPBEAT AFTER LOSSES AHEAD OF CRUNCH WEEKEND
LEICESTER Riders head coach Rob Paternostro remains upbeat despite seeing his team lose twice in a row to leave them only four points ahead at the top of the BBL Championship.
Riders lost away at Cheshire Phoenix on Friday night after an incredible last second three-pointer by Phoenix point guard Kahron Ross.
The visitors looked to have won the game when free throws from William Lee with 11 seconds left gave Riders the edge.
But for the second time in five days a last second shot won the game.
Paternostro said: “It was another amazing game. I thought that when I would look at the tape, I would find some lapse in defence, but that was not the case.
“The Cheshire starting five on offence is one of the best in the BBL, and they have two guards who can make shots off the dribble. It was the same at Worcester. They have a couple of guys in their backcourt who can do the same.
“We got ourselves into a nice position, and I expected us to win.
“After the free throws by Lee, they had no time-outs left, so they had to go quick. But their guard Mike McCall did a good job getting down the floor in a hurry.
“Geno Crandall got dragged off his man a little to play some help defence, but still got back and slightly deflected the shot, and Ross was right on the sideline, so it was a heck of a shot.
“But that is the way it goes sometimes in basketball.
“We know the BBL is super competitive this season, particularly because of the extra American on each team, and there are a lot of very good teams. We started very well and got a 15-point lead in the first quarter and looked the part.
“But they came back hard in the second quarter and they will have been heartened by their position at half-time, with honours even.
“They had not been shooting the ball that well from deep before our game but managed 50 per cent from beyond the three-point line.
“And we did not give them anything easy.
“We still managed to come back late on, as we had done in Worcester, and we created that huge five seconds turnover with 20 seconds left.
“So, it is important we remember how we got here and stay confident.
“There are plenty of things to work on and we will want to tighten defensively but, overall, we are in good form.
“We have a huge week coming up so there is no time to dwell on it.”
Riders’ big week in the Championship starts on Friday when they travel to arch-rivals Newcastle Eagles (6pm) before hosting the London Lions at the Morningside Arena on Sunday (5pm).
The Eagles moved second in the league with an easy win at Manchester Giants, while London comprehensively beat Glasgow Rocks, both games taking place on Sunday.