It is going to be a huge weekend for the Rocks, as they take on two teams who are vying for a top four finish come the end of the season. It all begins on Friday night when the Rocks travel down to Merseyside for a clash with the in form Tigers.
In preparation for their 1st leg BBL Trophy Semi Final clash against arch rivals, Newcastle Eagles, Everton Tigers entertain Glasgow Rocks this Friday evening, and Head Coach Tony Garbelotto expects the BBL’s third placed side to pose a tough test. He is however excited that, after a great weekend for the club in which they beat Marshall MK Lions and Worthing Thunder, they now face two of the BBL’s top three sides in the space of 48 hours, with the clash against the Rocks preceding the Semi Final. The Londoner commented: ‘For us it was a great weekend winning on the road against two of the form teams of the BBL. On Friday, we caught MK Lions not at their best and we played great. We shot well, moved the ball and played great team defence.’ He added: ‘On Saturday, we started well and then just hung on for the win. Our guys were pretty much out of gas for the whole of the second half and you have to credit Worthing for coming back like they did, but in the end we made three consecutive stops which won us the game.’
Moving ahead to this weekend, Garbelotto made reference to a close game a couple of weeks ago, which saw the Tigers reach the BBL Trophy Semi Final that they play the first leg of this weekend, via a one point win over the Rocks: ‘We have one of the toughest back to backs this weekend. Our league game against the Rocks is crucial. If they win, then they have the head to head. If we win, it will come down to the third game. We played well at their place two weeks ago and I think it will be just as close. They are very deep, and I expect them to be right there for third place in the league.’
With the BBL Trophy Final just a few weeks away, and the Playoff race heating up, Garbelotto paid tribute to the efforts of a few individuals on his Tigers roster, most notably British guard James Jones, and forward Jerome Gumbs. However, the player who has most consistently delivered in the Team GB Assistant Coach’s view, is former Clemson star Olu Babalola. He concluded: ‘I would have to say that there are three players who have been most consistent - James Jones, who has taken his game to another level, Jerome Gumbs - who has played great the whole of the season, but I still feel that night-in, night-out it has to be Olu Babalola, who has been our best defender, rebounder, and one of our go to players all season.’
Sterling Davis’ Rocks side are in a similar situation to Everton, as they go into a challenging double header this weekend, with the Tigers match up followed by a visit from Marshall MK Lions on Sunday. Davis is under no illusions about the test his players face if they are to maintain their current form and hold on to third place in the BBL Championship: ‘We have a very competitive weekend ahead of us.’ He said: ‘Our biggest adjustment this weekend will be the level on which we play both games. Everton and Milton Keynes are both playing good basketball right now and they are both right there with us in the standings. It would be great to come out the weekend with two wins’ he added.
Posted on 24 February, 2010
