10/01/07 The BBL Trophy semi-final draw, pitting the two Northernmost and Southernmost sides against one another, has been made and is as follows:
Home advantage was drawn randomly and the games will be played at the EIS, Sheffield and the Plymouth Pavilions on dates to be confirmed shortly. Springfield Honda Newcastle Eagles, the reigning BBL Trophy champions, face a tough visit to the second placed Sheffield Sharks. However, they may have gained some element of psychological advantage, having won 79-90 at this venue just last week. The Sharks, who won the Trophy in 1998 but hadn’t gone beyond the first round since 2002, can reflect upon two previous defeats of the Eagles this season. They won 85-83 on opening night largely thanks to 26 points from Jeff Bonds, and also 70-87 at the back end of November. Both sides qualified from their BBL Trophy groups with perfect 3-0 records. Meanwhile, last season’s losing finalists, the DMU Leicester Riders, face a long trip to meet the Kularoos Plymouth Raiders at the Plymouth Pavilions. The Raiders matched the two Northern teams as they stormed their group by winning all three games to secure their passage, including a victory over recently crowned BBL Cup champions the Poujoulat Heat Guildford. The Riders survived a defeat at the hands of London United to see themselves through to the semis courtesy of previous wins against the Milton Keynes Lions and London Leopards. They progressed on points difference after finishing joint top with United, who beat them 78-77 at the SPACE centre after a bizarre ending to the game. With Tony Garbelotto’s London side needing to win by eight to progress, they attempted to allow the Riders to tie the game, so as they could make up the points difference in overtime. Yet the Riders prevailed to reach the semi-finals of the competition for the ninth time in their history. The winners of these two all-or-nothing games will contest the BBL Trophy at the MetroRadio Arena, Newcastle, on Sunday 4th March. Tickets for the event are available from the MetroRadio Arena Box Office on 0870 707 8000 or online via www.metroradioarena.co.uk (follow the Ticketmaster link) .
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