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Match Report

Giants 82-83 Riders

Giants 82-83 Riders

Retro fever was back in Manchester tonight as the Manchester Giants took on the Leicester Riders in a thrilling end to end affair. 

William Lee gets the Giants rolling tonight. A three ball from the elbow, answering Leicester’s close quarter conversion. 

Lee follows up with a mid range jumper isolating Darien Nelson-Henry on defence. Lee has the first 5 Giants points of this game.

The former Rider William Lee contributed on both ends. A thunderous block to deny Nelson-Henry from close, keeping the riders lead slim. 

Tajh Green came up clutch with a block of his own. Green slapped the ball into the first few rows of the National Basketball Performance Centre to deny Marc Loving and keep the Rider lead to a single digit. 

Dirk Williams kept the intensity high during the opening quarter. The walking bucket managed to grab the defensive rebound, transition into offence and hit a three from the right elbow to give the Giants a 3 point lead. 

A physical first quarter saw both teams on even terms at 17 a piece. 

Anthony Roberson brought the energy in the second quarter. After a missed three ball attempt, Roberson crashed the paint for the offensive rebound. Roberson grabbed a second offensive rebound and converted himself from close range. 

The Manchester Giants began to form a sizable lead in the second quarter. A 7 point lead became a 9 point lead as Dirk Williams converted twice from the charity stripe. 

Dirk Williams also connected from three to pull the Giants out to a 12 point lead. The Giants went on a 12-0 scoring run in the opening three minutes of the 2nd quarter. 

Anthony Roberson decided to test the springs on the basket as he tried to pull it down with a powerful dunk off the dish from Tajh Green.  

A defensive switch to zone turned out to be pivotal for the Manchester Giants as they ended up outsourcing the Leicester Riders 26-14 in the second quarter alone. This put them up by 12 heading into the locker room.  

William Lee kicks off the 3rd quarter in similar fashion to the 1st. A jumpshot at midrange to hit the ground running for the Manchester Giants. 

After an impressive scoring run in the 2nd quarter from the Giants, the Riders responded with a barrage of point scoring as they went on an 11-2 scoring run to bring the lead to 3 points. 

The Riders got themselves back on even terms 8 minutes into the 3rd quarter. Rahmon Fletcher produced a signature drive and roll with the left to put the Giants back in the driving seat of this contest. 

Both teams go back and forth trading baskets. The back and forth contest was shattered when Nick Lewis connected from beyond the arc. Kofi Josephs doubled the lead as he connected with a three ball of his own. 

The Giants managed to weather the storm to some degree in the 3rd. Vince Macaulay’s men managed to claw back to a 7 point lead at the end of the 3rd quarter. 

A dynamite final quarter which started with a combo by the Leicester Riders. Tajh Green responded from close in back to back offensive possessions as well as from the free throw line to maintain a lead over the Riders. 

Green also showed his range heading into the business end of this quarter. A three ball to keep the 7 point lead intact. Green would have 10 points consecutively in this quarter, only split by Dirk Williams who returned to the court after being cut open. 

Carrington Love of the Leicester Riders converted twice from close on the fast break to put the Riders within a single point away from the Manchester Giants with 4 minutes left. 

Both teams trade basket for basket. 2 for 2 and 3 for 3 as both teams struggled to pull away from the other. It wasn't until Kimbal Mackenzie of the Leicester Riders delivered the final blow from a mid-range pull up, subsequently sealing the deal and giving the Riders the single point advantage. 

The Giants will be looking to bounce back in their next game as they take on the Surrey Scorchers at Surrey Sports Park. Tip off is on April 23rd at 2:00PM.

The highlights from tonight are available to view below: 

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