Valiant Rocks fightback in vain as Plymouth hold out

THE nature of long road trips and lengthy bus rides make the weekend double-headers concocted by the British Basketball League a test of mind and body. Twenty-four hours after squeezing by Bristol Flyers to extend their winning streak to four games, Glasgow Rocks ran out of steam last night against Plymouth Raiders despite a valiant fourth-quarter rally that turned a rout into a cliff-anger.

Ultimately, the troubled Devon outfit held on for a 73-69 victory that leaves the Scots in fifth place in the table but they were holding on for their lives at the end. Trailing by as much as 18 and hindered by the flattest of starts, Sterling Davis’ men overcame a string of shooting woes to have a shot at overtime. Alas for the visitors, Will Hall’s attempt to level missed its target and the great escape was undone.

It was tough on the English forward who grabbed 20 points and 13 rebounds, a haul exceeded only by Kieron Achara who matched his teammate’s scoring tally but added one board more. The pair required extra help however and it did not always arrive. American guard Riley Grabau’s struggles continued with just one shot converted but it was more than Adam Hammerschmidt, Armin Mazic and Jordan Clarke, a combined zero from 14 attempts, could manage.

Down 34-19 in the second quarter, Glasgow took too long to find their feet. Plymouth’s advantage peaked at 55-38 in the third quarter and although Warren Gillis hit a three-pointer to cut the gap to two with five seconds left, the Raiders – paced by 24 points and 17 rebounds from Adrien Sturt – held on to deny Davis the opportunity to move into 11th place in the all-time coaching wins in the BBL.

Elsewhere, leaders Newcastle Eagles remained 10 points clear but needed a final period surge to grab an 80-69 win over Surrey Scorchers while rivals Leicester Riders, who have five games in hand, kept up their chase by beating Cheshire Phoenix 89-82 behind 25 points from Neil Watson. Results. Plymouth Raiders 73 Glasgow Rocks 69, Surrey Scorchers 69 Newcastle Eagles 80, Leeds Force 73 London Lions 65, Cheshire Phoenix 82 Leicester Riders 89. Saturday Bristol Flyers 67 Glasgow Rocks 75