Game Report: Surrey Scorchers 71 – 65 Plymouth City Patriots

The Surrey Scorchers resisted a huge Plymouth City Patriots comeback to secure a 71-65 victory in exciting Friday night British Basketball League action.

Starting Five:

Surrey Scorchers starting five: Abdul Mohamed, Cameron Gooden, Saiquan Jamison, Padiet Wang, Josh Steel

Plymouth City Patriots starting five: Jacob Wiley, Spencer Levi, Elvisi Dusha, Joe Hart, Tj Atwood

First Half:

The Plymouth City Patriots travelled to the Surrey Sports Park on Friday night in desperate need of a win; they sit firmly at the bottom of the league, one place behind the hosting Surrey Scorchers and on just four points.

Surrey entered the game in ninth position, but tied with the Manchester Giants with a 6-13 record and 12 points. Given their eight-point advantage of tonight’s visitors, they should enter the game as favourites, but fans have reason to expect a closer game than the table suggests.

The teams have played twice already this season, with the Scorchers coming out on top on both occasions. However, Plymouth pushed them to overtime in the first fixture and lost by just two in their most recent meeting in November.

The game got off to an exciting start, with both sides evenly matched. In fact, they exchanged leads seven times in the first period.

TJ Atwood led the way for the Patriots, scoring 10 points in the first quarter through a steady diet of aggressive drives to the basket. In response, Surrey scored by committee and moved the ball effectively.

A huge Padiet Wang block set the tone on defence for Surrey, but Atwood’s scoring burst meant that Plymouth were up by one point after the opening 10 minutes.

The Scorchers responded swiftly, with Andrew Lawrence and Cameron Gooden catching fire from beyond the arc to give their team the momentum.

Plymouth couldn’t cool down Gooden for the remainder of the half; the Louisiana native offered a serious threat from three-point territory and forced his way to the free-throw line through a series of forceful drives.

The Patriots offered very little in response, only scoring a miserly four points in the second quarter. Heading into the break, the Scorchers had carved out a 20-point chasm.

Second Half:

If the Patriots had any hope of getting back in the game, they needed somebody to grab the proverbial bull by the horns. They found their man early in the third quarter in Jacob Wiley, who asserted himself tremendously and practically pitched up at the free-throw line.

Wiley even added some style to proceedings, putting his offensive bag on display by combining an explosive dunk with a highly graceful Euro step.

The Patriots were clearly buoyed by the performance of their determined guard. They outscored their opponents by 15 in the third and cut the deficit down to just five heading into the final quarter.

Surrey just had to watch, as Plymouth’s scoring tear continued. Mason Faulkner joined the party, offering a scoring punch from the bench. When he made a lay-up with seven minutes remaining, the Patriots were just one point behind.

The Scorchers hustled hard to keep Plymouth at arms-length, helped by an amazing performance from Saiquan Jamison, who pounded the boards and bulldozed his way to the basket.

Plymouth had multiple opportunities, but poor decision-making and free-throw shooting hurt Paul James’ team. They shot some unnecessary contested threes and became sloppy with the ball when it mattered.

An unsportsmanlike foul was committed on Padiet Wang in the final minute, which resulted in a heated moment between the sides. Wang split the charity shots, but ultimately that proved to be enough.

Surrey secured the six-point victory to return to winning ways after losing two on the bounce, subsequently, they extended Plymouth’s losing streak to six.

Player of the Game:

Tonight’s Player of the Game was Saiquan Jamison, who made an enormous and well-rounded impact for the Scorchers. He scored 15 points, pulled down 14 rebounds and dished out 3 assists.