THE WEEK THAT WAS: Scorchers Split A Pair At Home

Surrey Scorchers returned to BBL Championship action last week with back-to-back home games. A victory over the Sheffield Sharks on Friday evening was followed by a defeat against the Leicester Riders the following night. We'll break down what we saw.

Hot shooting through the first three quarters propelled the Scorchers to victory on Friday night. They had built a commanding 22 point advantage heading into the fourth quarter, which turned out to be crucial. They went almost seven minutes without scoring down the stretch as the Sharks chipped away at their lead, however they'd done enough earlier in the game to escape with a win.

On Saturday they followed a similar pattern of playing three good quarters. This time however, they didn't do enough to win the game this way. After an even opening to the game, the Scorchers suffered a nightmare second period, in which they lost Andrew Lawrence to a double-technical and were outscored 32-15. They kept pace with the Riders in the second half, but went on to lose the game by a 20 point margin.

The Stats

On offence, Surrey shot the ball at a remarkably similar rate in both games. Against Sheffield they went 30/63 from the field and 37.5% from three. In the game against Leicester they scored the same amount of buckets, on slightly more attempts and shot exactly the same percentage from distance.

One major difference in the two games was the opposition's shooting. Leicester went 40/80 from the field and shot a remarkable 51% from deep. Sometimes you have to tip your cap to the other team.

A stat that will definitely need tidying up is free throw shooting. For both games combined, the Scorchers shot 25/37 from the charity stripe, just 67.5%. 

They also need to find a way to keep their opponents off the glass. Despite Saiquan Jamison's efforts, the Scorchers were out-rebounded in both games this week. They were able to navigate the Sharks claiming 39 boards to their 32 on Friday, but it was a glaring issue on Saturday as the Riders dominated this category 52-30.

Star Player

Saiquan Jamison was at the heart of all that was good about the Scorchers this week. He got a double-double in both matches and was named in the BBL's team of the week for his efforts.

On top of his usual work in the paint and on the boards, Jamison capped off a red-hot shooting night for the team on Friday by hitting a three of his own. It was just his fourth of the season and when it went down it really felt like it would be the Scorchers' night.

Must See Highlight

As much as we enjoyed Quin Cooper's buzzer-beating three at the end of the first quarter against the Sharks, I think we have to give this one to Padiet Wang.

South Sudan Airlines were open for business against the Leicester Riders and Wang lit up Surrey Sports Park with two highlight dunks in the first half. He ended the game with 15 points and 12 assists, as well as a steal and two blocked shots. His performance was worth the entrance fee alone.