The Leicester Riders and the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks will go head-to-head at the Morningside Arena as sixth will take on seventh in the British Basketball League.
Leicester haven’t quite reached the heights of last season, but they’re three wins ahead of ninth-placed Manchester Giants, firmly in the Playoff spots.
Sheffield on the other hand are on par to finish higher than they did last season and will be keen to get into the top four and secure home-court advantage for the Playoffs.
Mid-table battle
The two teams sit comfortably in the Playoff spots, with the Sharks in sixth and the Riders in seventh.
There’s just one win separating the two sides, with the hosts knowing that a dub will mean they catch their opponents on 10 wins.
Leicester will be keen to put Thursday’s defeat to the Bristol Flyers behind them and find the form that helped them overcome both the Manchester Giants and the Caledonia Gladiators.
Sheffield also suffered a tough loss in their last game, falling to the London Lions on Christmas Eve.
Having not played in six days, the Sharks will be better rested compared to the Riders, who have only had two days between games.
On the other hand however, the Yorkshire side will host the Manchester Giants on New Year’s Eve, which means that Coach Lyons will have to manage his players’ minutes.
Downtown bombardment
The two teams have only faced each other once so far this season, with the Sharks winning 91-84 at home in Gameweek 10.
Both sides are shooting lights out from downtown, with the second and third best three-point percentages, only behind table-toppers London Lions.
The Riders are shooting with 38.2% per game, while the Sharks are just 0.4% lower with 37.8%.
Despite both having high three-point accuracy, the offensive output between the two couldn’t be more different.
Leicester have the fourth highest points per game with 88.2, while Sheffield are second from bottom with 78.6.
That is very evident with the fact that the Riders have six players averaging over 10 points per game.
They are led by their new American signing Teddy “Buckets” Allen who has put the League on notice with 23 points on average across three games.
The Sharks on the other hand only have three players averaging more than 10 points per game, led by Jalon Pipkins with 13.2.
If the visitors can keep the score low then they have a high chance of walking away with the victory.
If the game is high-scoring on the other hand, that should favour the hosts.
To watch this game of the 2023/24 British Basketball League season, tune in to YouTube on Saturday, December 30 at 5:00pm GMT.
You can still get your British Basketball fix by following the League on social media or heading to our YouTube channel to relive all of the best moments from the current season.
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