Men
WOMen
January 30, 2026
Game Report: MCR 80-85 Bristol Flyers
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Manchester Basketball fell 80-85 to the Bristol Flyers in the Super League Basketball Championship.
Max Jones led Manchester’s efforts with 22 points and 4 rebounds, continuing the form that has made him one of the 10 highest scorers in the league this season. Jordan Johnson also continued his hot run of form with 16 points off the bench.
Despite Jones and Johnson’s performances, Manchester struggled to put the ball in the basket through stretches. They finished the game shooting 41% from the field and 26% from three, while the Flyers couldn’t miss from deep.
The visitors hit 40% of their shots behind the line, led by Zach Anderson who drained four of those buckets. That proved to be the difference in what was a closely fought encounter.
Manchester led after a back-and-forth first quarter, but it was the second where the Flyers found separation in the scoreline. They were up double digits at the half thanks to a scoring burst from Anderson going into the break.
Bristol threatened to pull away in the third and put the result beyond doubt, but timely buckets from Kaiyem Cleary kept the hosts in touch, setting up the potential of a fourth-quarter charge.
And charge Manchester did, cutting their deficit to a single digit. With 2:23 on the clock, Johnson made it a six-point game. The result hung on a knife’s edge as the seconds ticked away.
With the shot clock switched off, Jones missed a chance to cut it to four, then Evan Walshe dealt the final blow with two made free throws. Jones then hit a three in response, but Manchester simply ran out of clock.
They fell to 9-8 in the SLB Championship.
It’s a quick turnaround for Manchester, who head to Croatia to play Dinamo Zagreb in the European North Basketball League.
The game will be played at 6pm on Tuesday, February 3. Manchester are already through to the last 16, but this is still a valuable opportunity for the team to test their mettle on the European stage.
Manchester return to the NBPC on Sunday, February 8. They play the Caledonia Gladiators at 3pm.
You can get your tickets here!
Manchester Basketball fell 80-85 to the Bristol Flyers in the Super League Basketball Championship.
Max Jones led Manchester’s efforts with 22 points and 4 rebounds, continuing the form that has made him one of the 10 highest scorers in the league this season. Jordan Johnson also continued his hot run of form with 16 points off the bench.
Despite Jones and Johnson’s performances, Manchester struggled to put the ball in the basket through stretches. They finished the game shooting 41% from the field and 26% from three, while the Flyers couldn’t miss from deep.
The visitors hit 40% of their shots behind the line, led by Zach Anderson who drained four of those buckets. That proved to be the difference in what was a closely fought encounter.
Manchester led after a back-and-forth first quarter, but it was the second where the Flyers found separation in the scoreline. They were up double digits at the half thanks to a scoring burst from Anderson going into the break.
Bristol threatened to pull away in the third and put the result beyond doubt, but timely buckets from Kaiyem Cleary kept the hosts in touch, setting up the potential of a fourth-quarter charge.
And charge Manchester did, cutting their deficit to a single digit. With 2:23 on the clock, Johnson made it a six-point game. The result hung on a knife’s edge as the seconds ticked away.
With the shot clock switched off, Jones missed a chance to cut it to four, then Evan Walshe dealt the final blow with two made free throws. Jones then hit a three in response, but Manchester simply ran out of clock.
They fell to 9-8 in the SLB Championship.
It’s a quick turnaround for Manchester, who head to Croatia to play Dinamo Zagreb in the European North Basketball League.
The game will be played at 6pm on Tuesday, February 3. Manchester are already through to the last 16, but this is still a valuable opportunity for the team to test their mettle on the European stage.
Manchester return to the NBPC on Sunday, February 8. They play the Caledonia Gladiators at 3pm.
You can get your tickets here!
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