NEWCASTLE Eagles secured a fourth straight league win in a high octane ‘run and gun’ game at Sport Central – but it was mighty close at times against spirited MK Lions.
Fab Flournoy prides his teams on razor sharp defence but for a good half an hour here they seemed happy to go blow for blow with an MK Lions team who made a mockery of their awful start to the season.
It made for hugely entertaining contest, but you can bet your bottom dollar perfectionist Flournoy will have hauled his side over the coals at half-time for not suffocating a spirited Lions side still in transition.
Instead they allowed the visitors too much time and space to effect the game and their talented guard Demarius Bolds nearly did enough to make them pay.
Still, Flournoy should be satisfied enough with a victory that means they go into a two-week break from league action with an impressive 100% record.
Again the Eagles were thankful to sharp-shooter Joe Chapman, absolutely irresistible during a first half that saw him hit 23 points by the half-time buzzer, while big men Andy Thomson and Darius Defoe rained down points on the Lions as the home side eventually prevailed.
They were given a rough ride along the way though, with the visitors keeping them within touching distance until a third-quarter scoring charge that gave Eagles a bit of breathing space.
Even then there was another rally from the Lions and in the end Flournoy’s men were thankful for the experience of veterans like Charles Smith – returning after a fortnight’s absence with a hamstring injury – and Andrew Bridge, who maintained his fine form with a workmanlike display.
The numbers might not have backed it up – he only broke into double figures by draining a crucial three in the first minute of the fourth quarter – but his steady hand was very welcome as the game ebbed and flowed.
The Eagles missed point guard Paul Gause, who missed out with a calf strain, but there could be few excuses about the lax defence that contributed to an incredible first stanza which saw the home side edge into a 27-25 lead.
The second quarter was equally frantic, the Eagles going toe to toe with the Lions to nudge themselves ahead by 55-45 at the break.
Chapman had raced to 23 points by half-time but with some Eagles aficionados rifling through the history books for the last Newcastle player to hit 40, the scores began to dry up.
He was frustrated in the third quarter and dropped to the bench for the fourth as his normally trusty aim let him down.
The defence tightened up a touch in the third quarter but Lions simply never gave up and the Eagles probably thought they had done enough when they took a nine-point lead with six minutes remaining – but Flournoy picked up a fourth foul and the Lions hit both free throws to put the game back in the mix. Forward Howard Crawford dovetailed well with Bolds and the Lions were back to 93-88 with 51 seconds on the clock.
But Bolds missed two shots from the free throw line and the Eagles sneaked home.
NEWCASTLE EAGLES 100 (Chapman 23, Thomson 21, Smith 21)
MK LIONS 88 (Crawford 25, Bolds 22, Northern 15)
