Leicester Riders edged closer to defending their BBL Championship title after securing a 71-85 road win over Surrey Scorchers.
Rob Paternostro’s side followed a home win against Plymouth Raiders to improve to 24-3 at the top – four wins ahead of Esh Group Eagles Newcastle.
Drew Sullivan top scored with 19 points off the bench, closely followed by Taylor King’s 18 points, while Brandon Clark and Pierre Hampton each added 13 points.
The visitors opened up a 7-22 advantage in the first on a three from Eric Robertson and were up 11 after 10 minutes. Surrey trimmed the deficit to seven points in the second before the Riders moved into a 12-point lead at the half.
Leicester maintained their control in the third and further increased their advantage to take a 52-66 lead into the final quarter before a mini fightback from the hosts.
Gabe McCray scored six of his team-high 19 points at the start of the fourth in an 8-2 run to close the gap to eight. However, the Riders repelled the charge with Tyler Bernardini answering from downtown as his side proceeded to take the win.
The Riders now have six games left in the regular season including two against their closest rival in the coming weeks.
Scorchers will now enjoy a 13 day rest before welcoming the Newcastle Eagles to the Sports Park for a 7pm tip-off on Easter Saturday.
Report from bbl.org.uk.
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