The Giants make the long trip back to Manchester after losing out to the Plymouth City Patriots 77-68. 

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The Manchester Giants made the lengthy trip to the bottom of the country this evening to take on the Plymouth City Patriots in the latest British Basketball League action. 

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The last time these 2 teams faced off it was Plymouth who stole a win on the road. Manchester would be looking to do the same heading into this tie meanwhile Plymouth would be looking to do the double and make it all honours even in the head to head. 

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Starting 5’s: 

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Manchester Giants Mason Bourcier, Nicholas Lewis, Nick Stampley, William Lee, Austin Lawton. 

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Plymouth City Patriots: Tj Atwood, Elvisi Dusha ©, Joe Hart, Jacob Wiley, Spencer Levi. 

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First Half: 

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It was the Nick Stampley show in the 1st quarter, whether it was down low in the post or from the perimeter, Nick Stampley was hitting from anywhere he needed to. It was a close game early on but started to run away from Manchester quickly, Wiley of the Patriots put Plymouth up by double digits at the halfway point in the quarter. Jalen Harris and Evan Walshe added to the scoring for Manchester in the final minute to reduce the deficit to 7. 

The 2nd quarter was all Plymouth. A 7 point lead tripled in size after 10 minutes as Manchester seemingly could not plug the holes in their defence. A 26-12 scoring quarter at the Pavilions with Manchester only making 5/18 of their attempts from the field. Meanwhile, Plymouth found their success on the interior and later extended their offence to the perimeter as Plymouth went 3 ⁄ 8 from beyond the arc. 

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Second Half: 

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Manchester managed to reduce the deficit in the 3rd quarter. A positive start from Austin Lawton followed up by trips to the charity stripe from Nick Stampley and Evan Walshe who made both of their respective shots. Manchester slowly chipped away at the Patriot advantage through the quarter through a combination of free throws and 3 point attempts. Nick Stampley and William Lee provided range from the outside whilst Evan Walshe performed magic on the inside. The Giants spark plug would end up having a positive night with 24 points off the bench too. 

The 4th quarter was in favour of Manchester. A 23-16 point quarter for the visitors as they began to hit their shots from beyond the arc and became a very perimeter centric team in the final 10 minutes. Jalen Harris, William Lee, Evan Walshe and Nick Stampley hit from downtown Plymouth to end the evening and bring a 21 point lead at the half to a 9 point lead to conclude. 

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Stats: 

Evan Walshe: 24 Points, 4 Rebounds, 2 Steals. 

Nick Stampley: 19 Points, 6 Rebounds, 42%3PT. 

William Lee: 10 Points, 15 Rebounds. 

Jalen Harris: 11 Points, 71%FG. 

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Next up for Brian Semonians Manchester Giants is a return trip to the National Basketball Performance Centre as they host a familiar foe in the form of the Sheffield Sharks. Tip off is scheduled for April 7th at 6:00pm. 

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All highlights from tonight’s trip to the Pavillions will be available to view below: