Gladiators Suffer Play-Off Heartache After Top Three Finish
The Caledonia Gladiators endured heartache at the conclusion of the British Basketball League season after falling to defeat in the play-off quarter finals.
The Macklin Motors-backed side had gone into March’s fixtures and the start of the end-of-season run-in sitting third in the points after a narrow loss to Cheshire Phoenix in the final game of February.
Heading to Manchester, the Gladiators secured a comfortable 106:87 win against the Giants having topped every quarter before welcoming the London Lions to the Playsport Arena.
London had just wrapped up the regular season title and the Gladiators grabbed the early lead before going in at half-time two points up on their rivals. However, London roared back into contention, and grabbed the win with a dominant showing in the final quarter.
It didn’t take long for Caledonia to put the disappointment of that defeat in the past however, with a five game winning streak starting with a home win against the Newcastle Eagles thanks to 33 points from Quade Green.
A dominant performance then saw the Gladiators put 100 points on Leicester Riders before a return game with Newcastle ended with a second victory against their ‘local’ rivals in as many weeks following a topsy-turvy game that was only decided in the fourth quarter.
Green was once again the star man in a narrow comeback win on the road against Surrey Scorchers before a huge game against Cheshire that went all the way to overtime.
A late score from Lukas Palyza had levelled the scores at 98 all and the Scottish side went on to secure the victory by 116:110 to move level on points with their rivals with three games of the regular season to go.
A strong defensive display from Sheffield Sharks in the following fixture however saw the Gladiators beaten in a low-scoring affair, with wins against Plymouth and Bristol not enough to beat Cheshire to second in the table.
Drawn against Newcastle in the play-offs, Caledonia welcomed their rivals to the Playsport Arena for the first of the best-of-three games – with the visitors springing a surprise as they came out on top with a 97:78 victory earning a 1-0 lead.
It meant the pressure was on when the Gladiators then made the trip to Tyneside for the second game but the home side took control in the first quarter to secure an eight point lead.
Moving 15 points clear by half-time, Newcastle were in control and a 94:71 win saw them progress to the second round and left the Gladiators to turn their focus to another season.
March – May:
- Manchester Giants (A) – Won 106:87
- London Lions (H) – Lost 82:76
- Newcastle Eagles (H) – Won 98:80
- Leicester Riders (A) – Won 115:90
- Newcastle Eagles (A) – Won 90:84
- Surrey Scorchers (A) – Won 95:89
- Cheshire Phoenix (H) – Won 116:110
- Sheffield Sharks (A) – Lost 69:62
- Plymouth Patriots (H) – Won 96:81
- Bristol Flyers (A) – Won 80:75
- Newcastle Eagles (H) – Lost 97:78
- Newcastle Eagles (A) – Lost 94:71
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