THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
When the season started the London Lions were tipped by many to sweep the domestic silverware such was their impressive recruitment during the summer. Coupled with extra investment and clever marketing they are one of the leading brands in the sport, and not only are they helping grow basketball in this country, but they are also putting the British game on the map across Europe.
The Lions made history this past Sunday sealing the first part of their march to dominate the season. There is of course a long way to go and the men's team are still in the middle of a long Euro Cup campaign, which they are well placed to qualify from. The defeats were at the expense of the Leicester Riders teams, another first for the game as it was the first time that both the men's and women's sides from the same team had competed on finals days, to secure the WBBL and BBL Cups. The Lions' women's team extend their domestic win streak to 51 games as the men's team win their second BBL Cup in four years.
The Utilita Arena in Birmingham was host to the finals and the women's final was first on the schedule. In winning their sixth successive final they extended their domestic win streak to 51 games in front of a sold-out crowd. The Lions dominated the game throughout and eventually won 95-42 with Mikiah 'KiKi' Herbert Harrigan scoring a team-high 19 points and Holly Winterburn (winning the most valuable player) adding 16. The women's team have dominated their season so far winning all 34 domestic games by an average margin of 40 points. They are looking to repeat the sweep of all competitions last season by winning the WBBL Cup, Trophy, Championship and Play-Off titles. It is now 646 days since the women's team have lost a domestic fixture and only narrowly lost their opening playoff game in Europe.
The Lions went into the game looking to end their losing streak of three defeats in BBL finals but faced tough opposition as the holders Leicester Riders were keen to defend their title. Leicester never led in the final but showed determination to keep within touching distance of the Lions, in a keenly contested game. Eventually the Lions' quality shone through to guide the London team to a 79-71 win. A few times this season former NBA forward Sam Dekker, who registered 22 points and nine rebounds to gain the most valuable player award, has come up big down the stretch. With the Riders cutting a 16 point deficit down to just four points late in the last period, Dekker scored two baskets to extend the lead and take the momentum out of the Riders comeback. This serves as a reminder that the Lions won't have it all their own way on their quest for a sweep. This was the Lions' second BBL Cup in four years and the first men's title for their ownership group, 777 Partners, since taking over the franchise.
Further proof of the growing popularity of the sport, other than both games being watched by a sold-out crowd in Birmingham, is the viewership figures that show the Lions' EuroCup game on 18 January against Aquila Basket Trento (broadcast on BT Sport 1) gained a 181% increase in peak viewership from the last peak record.
The sport is thriving within the UK as two out of three of the Lions last home EuroCup games have boasted sold-out crowds at the Copper Box Arena and the OVO Arena Wembley. Both Lions teams boast a plethora of talent as they have assembled star-studded rosters with a hybrid of homegrown tier-one players in addition to ex-NBA and further international signings, with the diverse squads boasting an abundance of experience playing in major basketball leagues around the world.
Head Coach Ryan Schmidt, of the London Lions men's team, spoke to Sky Sports shortly after the final buzzer. "I'm excited for this group. When you play a team like Leicester who are a team used to playing in this environment and winning championships, experience is always going to have an impact. You saw that in the second half. We knew that Leicester weren't going to go away, but just starting from scratch with this group to be able to win a championship in January is special. I'm happy for them because of what they put into this - it's not easy to do what we're doing, but I'm just happy for these guys to be able to hold up that trophy."
You can find out more about the Lions on their site here https://www.thelondonlions.com/ and the British Basketball League here https://www.bbl.org.uk/
