BBL: Newcastle Eagles beat Durham Wildcats to close on Leicester Riders

Charles Smith: Top-scored in Newcastle Eagles' win over Durham Wildcats

Newcastle Eagles closed the gap on BBL Championship leaders Leicester Riders with a 96-92 victory over Durham Wildcats on Friday.

Charles Smith led the way with a game-high 27 points to move his side to within six points of the Riders, although Leicester still remain favourites to claim their first regular season title.

Daruis Defoe chipped in with a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds, with Keith Page the top-performer for Durham with 26 points.

Elsewhere, One Health Sharks Sheffield grabbed a 78-73 win over Worcester Wolves, while Surrey Heat easily beat Cheshire Phoenix 108-84.

The Sharks produced perhaps their best half of the season as they stormed into a 50-27 half-time lead but the Wolves roared back with a 12-1 run after the restart and closed to 74-73 with 12 seconds, but Sheffield clung on.

Travis Holmes led the Heat, who produced a dominant second-half display, with 30 points and nine assists, supported by 22 points and eight rebounds from Sam Cricelli.

Mersey Tigers are still waiting their first win, after 28 games, as they lost 93-79 to Marjon Plymouth Raiders.

The Raiders, led by 26 points from Javarris Barnett, used a massive 31-6 second quarter to secure the victory.