BBL Championship: Newcastle Eagles beat Cheshire Phoenix in overtime thriller

The Newcastle Eagles celebrate their big win over the London Lions (Image: BBL)

The Newcastle Eagles edged out the Cheshire Phoenix 113-110 after three periods of overtime, while the Leicester Riders continued their perfect start to the campaign in another thrilling week of BBL Championship action. 

It capped a fine weekend for Newcastle following Friday's hard-fought win over the London Lions, who hit back with a comprehensive victory against the Manchester Giants on Sunday.

The Glasgow Rocks also showcased their talent with a resounding win over the Surrey Scorchers, and the Sheffield Sharks continued their impressive start to the season by seeing off the Plymouth City Patriots.

Here's a look back on the league action over the past week...

Newcastle pick up big wins

Duke Shelton led Newcastle with 22 points and 16 rebounds as Newcastle finally overcame the Phoenix following three periods of overtime on Sunday evening.

It was Shelton who proved the difference down the stretch with four quickfire points in the third and final overtime to help the Eagles over the line after Corey Johnson had initially sent the game beyond regulation time with a three throw late in the game.

The Eagles thought they had been on course for victory in the second period of overtime only for Teddy Okereafor to tie the game with four seconds to go.

Rahmon Fletcher finished a rebound shy of a triple-double as he posted 21 points, 13 assists and nine boards for Newcastle, while Cheshire's Michael Ochereobia led all scorers with a 24-point, 17-rebound double-double.

Newcastle had handed the Lions their first defeat of the Championship season on Friday when they clinched a 96-84 victory behind Fletcher's 25-points and career-high 17 assists.

Darius Defoe supported with 18 points for the Eagles, while Isaiah Reese led the Lions with 23 points on the night.

Tempers threatened to spill over in a feisty second half when Reese was dealt an unsportsmanlike for a shove on Defoe, before a pair of Shelton slams pulled the Eagles clear.

London responded impressively on Sunday with a 107-80 win over the Manchester Giants after another stellar outing from Dirk Williams, who led all scorers with 30 points on 11 of 16 shooting.

Dan Clark posted a double-double with 17 points and 17 rebounds, but it wasn't enough to help the Giants overturn a deficit as large as 29 points.

Leicester stay perfect

On a night that saw three of the top four play, defending champions Leicester seized the initiative and made it five from five as they overcame a Glasgow side that picked up two wins last week in a 105-76 victory.

Rocks were held to just 13 points in the first quarter as Geno Crandall's 16 points led the Riders to 65 in total in a dominant and eventually decisive first half.

Patrick Whelan led the Riders with 22 points and seven rebounds as Crandall finished with 18.

Glasgow bounced back in style on Saturday with a resounding 122-81 victory over the Surrey Scorchers as Jaycee Hillsman (33) and Jordan Johnson (32) combined for 65 total points.

Johnson fell one assist short of a triple-double having also managed 10 rebounds, while every player on the Rocks roster to step on court contributed a bucket.

The Scorchers were once again led in scoring by captain Tayo Ogedengbe, who dropped 21 points while Saiquan Jamison put up a season-high of 19, as well as grabbing a game-high of 14 rebounds.

Wins for Sharks, Flyers

Sheffield continued their steady start to the season on Friday with a 62-51 win in a tight affair against the winless Patriots.

Both sides struggled to find their rhythm in the offensive end, capped by a final quarter that saw Plymouth muster only six points as the Sharks ran out winners.

Rodney Glasgow Jr posted 16 points for Sheffield while Rowell Graham-Bell logged a game high 17 points for the Patriots.

The Bristol Flyers also knocked off a winless Surrey team 80-71 on Friday behind 23 points from Malcolm Delpeche, 17 of which came in the first half.

Trejon Jacob supplied a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Flyers, whose dominant defensive displays in the middle two periods proved key.

Bristol added their second win of the week on Sunday when they beat the Patriots 78-58 following 17 points apiece from Delpeche and Marcus Evans.

Kofi Josephs starred again for Plymouth as he led all scorers with a game-high 24 points.

The BBL action continues on Friday when the Manchester Giants take on the Glasgow Rocks live on Sky Sports Main Event and Mix from 7pm.