Manchester Basketball beat Newcastle Eagles 102-98 to move up to third in the SLB Championship.

Jordan Johnson led the team’s scoring off the bench with 20 points in 17 minutes, shooting 5-9 from the field. Four Manchester players had 15 points, as Pjay Smith backed Johnson with 17 from the backcourt.

Smith had an impressive 7 rebounds on the night, but it was Matt Nicholson who led the team on the boards with nine. The American big man bolted out the gates to build a sizeable lead for the hosts, which they held on to late.

Rebounding was key to Manchester’s win. They won the battle on the boards 39-27 and held the Eagles to just 2 offensive rebounds in the game. Both of Manchetser’s bigs had 9 rebounds, as Duke Shelton impressed with his physicality off the bench.

Manchester led by as much as 15 points in the game, and fended off the Eagles in the fourth quarter to get the win over the line. Smith and Johnson made big plays down the stretch, including a series of trips to the foul line to seal the game.

They built their lead simply by outscoring the Eagles in the first half. They scored 58 points through two quarters, led by Nicholson’s 12 points and 6 rebounds. The hosts won the second period 26-15 to blow the game open, thanks to a 10-0 run midway through the quarter.

Newcastle surged midway through the fourth, hitting a number of bombs from deep to cut Manchester’s lead from 15 to two. Gus Okafor’s free throws made it 92-90 with two minutes left. Manchester showed heart to hold on and improve to 9-7 in the SLB Championship.

Manchester head to Norway for ENBL action next time out. They take on Gimle Basketball on Wednesday, January 21, at 7 pm. vs Manchester Basketball

They return home on Sunday for the SLB Cup, taking on Bristol Flyers on Sunday, January 25, at the NBPC, with the game starting at 3pm - tickets are available here.

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