BBL: Newcastle Eagles overcome Manchester Giants to claim top spot
Newcastle Eagles are back on top of the BBL Championship following their convincing 96-76 win over Manchester Giants.
Last Updated: 10/11/12 6:08am
The Eagles were in charge throughout as guard forward Charles Smith weighed in 21 points, while Darius Defoe and Joe Chapman added 18 points each.
The defeat was Manchester's sixth of the season and meant Stefan Gill's 23-point haul counted for little.
Winless Mersey Tigers let a half-time lead slip as they went down 94-67 against Sheffield Sharks.
The Tigers held a 42-37 advantage at the end of the second quarter but Sheffield stormed back in the third before finishing strongly to hand their opponents an eighth league defeat from as many games.
Micah Williams top scored with 30 points for the Sharks, with Gage Daye adding 28 to leave the Tigers wondering what could have been.
London Lions eased past Durham Wildcats 101-74, with Tayo Ogedengbe (27) leading the way.