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The Gladiators headed to Leicester to face off against the Riders looking to build momentum heading into the final weeks of the Super League Basketball Championship. The Gladiators were in search of revenge from their festive lost to the Riders at home and would ultimately take care of business away on the road. Behind an unforgettable performance from tonight’s MVP, Delaynie Byrne, the Gladiators would head back to Playsport with the 20-point win in the bag.
The first quarter would see both teams trading baskets for the whole 10 minutes, with little between the home and away sides. The Gladiators would get out in the lead quickly in the first quarter, scoring 5 within the first minutes of the game. The Riders would keep answering back throughout the quarter, taking the lead for the first time after 5 and a half minutes of action. The two teams looked evenly matched, but the Riders would take the slight edge of the Gladiators, finishing the quarter up by just one point. The first quarter would end 23 – 22 in favour of the home side, Leicester Riders.
The Gladiators would stun the home team and crowd in the second quarter as they retake the lead and push it to double digits by the end of the first half. The Gladiators would be led to the 12-point lead at the half by Delaynie Byrne, who put up 14 points and 9 rebounds in the second quarter alone. The Gladiators put together a strong second quarter on both ends of the ball, putting up 26 points and 6 steals. The Gladiators would take the quarter 13 – 26, taking a 12-point lead into the half.
The score at half-time was 36 – 48 to the Caledonia Gladiators.
The Gladiators would continue to push their lead in the second half of the game in Leicester. Both teams would struggle from three-point range to start the second half of action at the Netball Centre in Loughborough, with the Gladiators hitting the only one of six attempts between the teams. With both teams picking up their defensive intensity in the second half, the Gladiators would remain comfortable in charge of the game entering the final quarter of action up by 17 points.
Despite entering the final quarter of action with the comfortable lead, the Gladiators keeping their intensity high, pushing their lead to 20-points to finish the game. The Leicester Riders showed their heart throughout the final 10 minutes of action, losing the final quarter by just 3 points, 18 – 21. The Gladiators would start the last quarter strong, taking their biggest lead of the game, 26-points, with just two and a half minutes left in the game. However, the Riders would put together a final push towards the final minutes, to bring the game back to 20-points. The Gladiators put together an all-round performance with 84 points, 45 rebounds, 24 assists and 16 steals. The Gladiators won the game, 64 – 84.
The Caledonia Gladiators look to continue their momentum next weekend as they head to Essex to face the Essex Rebels on Saturday, April 12th.
The final score of the game was 64 – 84 to the Caledonia Gladiators.
Tonight’s MVP was Delaynie Byrne with an unbelievable double-double:
Top Performers:
Delaynie Byrne – 27 points, 18 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Kirsty Brown – 11 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals
Téa Adams – 7 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals
Alix McIntosh – 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals
