Eagles Weekly Wrap - Issue:20

OUR WEEKLY ROUNDUP – CHECK OUT THE SCORES AND COACHES’ COMMENTS ON THE TEAM’S PERFORMANCES.

SATURDAY 27TH JANUARY 2024

York Eagles V East Durham Lions

U14 Jr NBL North Conference I

Result: 89-42 (Win)

Player of the game: 

Toby Gee – 4pts/5stls/2blks

Coach Tyler Paton-Pottage commented on the U14s performance: 

“We tried to focus on being able to be aggressive on defence and to be able to deny passing channels better, however, we overcommitted and ended up fouling too often in the first half, only leaving a 16pt gap, good but not our standard. 2nd half we did better as we only gave up 14pts. The lads also rebounded well for most of the game, but struggled at times to put it back in from an offensive rebound. Offensively we were good, a lot of points were scored of assists, which shows team play and good vision to react to cuts from baseline and wing positions. A massive “TITLE” decider next week against the only team to have beaten us this season, Doncaster (15-0), which we need to win by 6pts or more to take the lead of the league as our record is at 14-1. A hard week's training and good preparation needed!”

Notable Performances:

Samuel Ho – 18pts/7rebs/7asts/7stls

James Wormald – 18pts (100%FGM)/4asts/5stls

Sam Smales – 14pts/9rebs/2blks

Luke Lattimore Bahrij – 10pts (x2 3PM)/2blks

Caleb Flitcroft – 6pts/8asts/6rebs

York Eagles @ Teeside Lions

U12s Yorkshire Regional League

Result: 87-74 (Loss)

Player of the game:

Billy Kemp

Coach James Searson commented on the U12s performance:

“A much-improved performance from the team on Saturday. We played hard from start to finish. On defence we were winning rebounds and communicating better and defending better as a team. We still need to work on help defence, as often allowed Lions to drive through us, but overall, happy with the improvement I’m seeing. My player of the game goes to Billy Kemp as he was very vocal on the court and trying to get everyone back and in position on and off the court trying to explain help defence to others. Offensively we didn’t get beat by the high press once today which was incredible in comparison to last week and even the previous fixture between us and the Lions. More work required on 5 out structures, understanding pass, cut, and fill but really happy with the team’s performance.”

Notable performances:

George FitzThomas – 28pts

Harry Kim – 14pts

York Eagles @ Charnwood College Riders

U18 Jr NBL Northern Premier

Result: 88-73 (Loss)

Players of the Game:

Freddie Marshall – 28pts (x9 3PM)

Billy Donaghy – 18pts/7rebs

Coach Kostas Kotidis commented on the U18s performance:

“We played a very strong, well-conditioned team, that has a lot of depth and can tell they train together very frequently. We were again depleted, with 2 players (Radlie & Korbin) playing not 100% and Makoto returning from a long absence due to injury. Nevertheless, we managed to compete all through the first half, showing elements of a good team that could be crossing the line first. Then the third quarter happened: a combination of fatigue and poor thought process (including myself), led to a catastrophic quarter that created a mountain for us to climb. However, we managed to win the 4th, thanks to a killer performance from Freddie Marshall, who found his sweet spot with 9 threes and 4 of them in the final quarter. However, I have to say that everyone who played, no matter a few minutes or many, contributed greatly and made Rod and me, proud. Billy Donaghy had his most productive game this season as he shows signs of maturity in his game. It is great to see a handful of our future u18s players as it’s a good investment for them long term. I hope we can continue the 4th quarter into the next few games as better things will happen.”

York Eagles v Sheffield Hatters II

U14 Jr NBL Girls North Conference I

Result: 80-28 (Win)

Players of the game:

Danika Croft – 18pts/4rebs/2stls

Katherine Hirst – 14pts/6rebs/3asts/4stls

Coach Ghada Khattab commented on the U14s Girls Performance:

“The girls are growing from strength to strength this second half of the season, with their eyes firmly on the prize… the league title and doing so unbeatable. With each encounter, we’re looking to increase our lead and/or efficiency, and Saturday's game was no exception. Our offensive transitions were swift, and the finishes were a joy to watch, particularly when there were opportunities from 3 quick passes in succession. The varied skills in terms of shooters and drivers give the team a real edge, and it's great to see less experienced players step up their game. Still some work on team defence and rebounding but we’re getting there. Great scoring and rebounding from Danika and Katherine, some great assists from Maya and solid all-round performances from Zofia and Amelie.” 

Notable performances:

Grace Roberts – 13pts/2stls

Elizabeth Hirst – 8pts

Maya Foulkes – 5pts/8asts/4stls

York Eagles II @ City of Leeds Black

U14 Jr NBL North Conference I

Result: 67-32 (Loss)

Player of the Game:

Fin Lewis – 4pts/4rebs/2asts

Coach Steve Hardisty commented on the U14s II performance:

“A tough game against a competent City of Leeds Black team who put in a stronger performance than earlier in the season when we only lost by 7pts. The highlight was the third quarter where the boys came out after halftime determined to salvage something from the game, which they won 20-18 – by playing some good basketball. The rest of the game made pretty difficult viewing, with too many turnovers, a lack of creativity on 5 out, a failure to convert shots from good shooting positions, and a general lack of desire to be the first to pick up loose balls. Despite the score, the boys actually played good defence on help, but then lacked rebounding which Leeds happily took.”

Notable performances:

Henderson Ho – 8pts/4rebs

Bertie Hardisty – 8pts/6rebs

SUNDAY 28th JANUARY 2024

York Eagles 2 @ Tees Valley Mohawks

U14 Jr NBL North Conference I

Result: 39-43 (Win)

Player of the game:

THE TEAM

Coach Tyler Paton-Pottage commented on the U14s 2 performance:

“Coming off two consecutive games of disappointing performances, we travelled up to Middlesbrough knowing that we had pressure to perform having beaten Mohawks earlier in the season, after a very nervy start by both teams and us knowing being able to keep their much bigger team out of the paint and not allowing them score under the basket, we stood a chance, we were down 5 at HT, thanks to some good shots from Cameron Stewart and Fin Lewis, we talked at HT about playing offence with structure and not settling for one pass the shoot, we needed to rotate the ball and set screens to get us to the hoop as we knew we were quicker than them, defensively, box out and secure the ball to outlet. A strong showing from Mohawks in the third after we struggled to get shots in from deep leaving us 9pts behind with a quarter left. Then the guys showed real character and the energy from the bench throughout led us to take the lead with 90 seconds left thanks to some great finishes from Bertie, James, and Jake. After a good use of timeouts to keep the guys in check and a break, knowing Oscar had to make 1 of his 2 FTs to make it a 2-possession game, in which he did exactly, gave us a 4 pt cushion, by then Mohawks kind of threw in the towel and we came victorious! A fantastic win for the lads to get 2 wins from a big team. The future looks exciting! Sorry Steve and Kris, as I took over the coaching duties, but I think you both didn’t mind! ☺”

Notable Performances:

Oscar Longbottom – 8pts/4rebs

Bertie Hardisty – 7pts/2blks

Griffin Evans – 6pts/10rebs

York Eagles III v Whitby Jets

U16s Friendly

Result: 95-4 (Win)

Players of the Game:

THE TEAM

Coach Azaan Iyer commented on the U16s III performance:

“An impressive win from a scoreline’s point of view, but it was a platform for players to execute team structures. The 5-out motion on offence and fundamental defensive transition principles were expertly demonstrated, showcasing not only dominance but starting prowess. Every player’s contribution underscored their understanding of these strategies, making the game a valuable learning experience for the Eagles. Thanks to Jets for coming on short notice to get a game going and showing resilience to keep going, nevertheless of the scoreline.”

Notable Performances:

Leo Wolender – 18pts

Lucas Hazell – 14pts

Rohan Banerjee – 12pts

Sam Giannini – 10pts

Ali Almazedi – 10pts

Associate Head Coach Tyler Paton-Pottage commented on the week gone and going into the main stage of the season:

“Our teams are all heading in the right direction, no matter what their record may be, our end goal is to coach Basketball and make sure the kids enjoy playing and representing York Eagles. Our U14s Boys and Girls, all managed to have success this weekend, meaning our U14s Girls have both eyes on becoming champions, and our U14s A have a great chance to win their league too. Our U12s are going from strength to strength with an impressive performance v Teesside. Our U18s are certainly learning the hard way but are definitely showing signs of improvement and being able to play at the highest level of junior basketball, with games coming up against LDM, QE, and Edinburgh, wins are hopefully on the cards. Great to see our U16s 3 get a win and have a platform to put practice into games.”