Friday night produced three home victories in the Super League Basketball Championship, with London Lions beating Leicester Riders 71–66, Bristol Flyers defeating Manchester Basketball 76–58 and Newcastle Eagles overcoming Caledonia Gladiators 91–67.[1]
The results left London as the competition’s only 5–0 team among the six clubs involved, while Bristol and Newcastle both strengthened their positions with convincing responses to earlier setbacks.[1]
London protect their unbeaten start
London’s 71–66 victory over Leicester extended their perfect SLB opening to five games.[1] The Riders remain without a league win after their first two fixtures.[1]
The Lions established their advantage early, winning the opening quarters 20–10 and 23–17 to lead 43–27 at half-time. Leicester responded after the break, taking the third quarter 16–14 and the fourth 23–14, but London’s first-half cushion was enough.[6]
Ethan Price led London with 19 points and eight rebounds, Joshua O’Garro added 15 points, and Morayo Soluade supplied a game-high 10 assists. Bernard Pelote led Leicester with 15 points and 15 rebounds, while Deante Johnson Jr also scored 15.[6]
The official box score also shows the contrast that helped London survive despite shooting 35% from the field: the Lions recorded 25 assists to Leicester’s 15 and forced 17 turnovers while committing seven.[6]
The five-point final margin made this the tightest of Friday’s three games.[6] It also completed a demanding turnaround for the Lions, who lost 74–71 at Šiauliai in their EuroCup opener on Wednesday before returning to the Copper Box Arena two days later.[5]
That schedule gave the fixture a different challenge from London’s first four domestic wins. The Lions entered Friday at 4–0 after victories against Bristol, Newcastle, Cheshire and Liverpool, with the preview identifying recovery and rotation as important factors following the Lithuania trip.[4]
For Leicester, the result represents a second competitive performance without a first win.[1] Their opening defeat came in a high-scoring game at Cheshire, whereas Friday’s contest was much tighter on the scoreboard.[1]
Bristol answer Newcastle defeat
Bristol produced the clearest turnaround of the night by beating Manchester 76–58 at SGS College Arena.[8] The official Flyers match centre listed the game for Friday evening in Bristol, while the final score was confirmed by the live results feed.[1][2]
The Flyers led 20–15 after the first quarter before Manchester reduced the gap to one point at half-time, 36–35.[8] Bristol then broke the game open with a 30–7 third quarter and carried a 66–42 lead into the final period.[7][8]
Matteus Case led all scorers with 19 points and Davion Bailey added 18.[8] Michael Diggins Jr contributed 12 points, nine rebounds and five blocks, while Luke Nelson led Manchester with 11 points.[7]
The official recap said Diggins scored 10 of his 12 points in the opening quarter and highlighted Bailey’s contribution before Bristol’s decisive 11–0 start to the second half.[7]
The 18-point win moved the Flyers to 2–2.[1] Their first three league games had included a two-point home defeat by London, a nine-point victory at Cheshire and a heavy 94–68 loss at Newcastle.[1][3]
That makes Friday’s response significant.[3][8] Only a week after conceding 94 points at the Vertu Arena, Bristol held Manchester to 58, with the official statistics recording 18 Manchester turnovers and eight Bristol blocks.[8]
Manchester arrived after opening their SLB campaign with a 79–67 home victory over Surrey 89ers.[1] The Bristol defeat therefore leaves them at 1–1 rather than allowing them to build an unbeaten start.[1]
Newcastle make it two straight
Newcastle delivered the largest margin of the night, beating Caledonia 91–67 at the Vertu Arena.[1]
The Eagles started with a 9–0 run and led 26–14 after the first quarter.[10] A further 28–14 period made it 54–28 at half-time.[9] Caledonia won the third quarter 24–16, cutting the gap to 70–52, before Newcastle closed the game with a 21–15 fourth quarter.[9]
Tavis Smith led Newcastle with 19 points, Cole Long collected a team-high nine rebounds and Blondeau Tchoukuiegno handed out six assists. Al-Amir Dawes paced Caledonia with 11 points and eight assists, while Te’Jon Sawyer led the visitors with eight rebounds.[9]
Caledonia’s official report said Newcastle outrebounded the Gladiators 15–7 in the first quarter and that the visitors shot 1-for-11 from three-point range in the first half.[10] It also credited Caledonia’s renewed energy after the break for the improved third-quarter performance.[10]
The 24-point victory followed Newcastle’s 94–68 win over Bristol on 25 September, giving Marc Steutel’s side back-to-back home victories after their opening defeat at London.[1][3]
Newcastle now sit at 2–1 in the early schedule.[1] Caledonia move to 1–2 after opening with a win over Liverpool and then losing at Sheffield and Newcastle.[1]
What Friday changed
London remain the pace-setters among Friday’s participants, but the most striking results came in Bristol and Newcastle.[1] Both clubs held their opponents below 70 and won by double figures, creating momentum that was missing earlier in their campaigns.[1]
The night also left Leicester searching for a first win, Manchester with an even record after two games and Caledonia trying to stop a two-game slide.[1]
Official SLB/Genius box scores are now available for all three games, providing the quarter-by-quarter scores and player leaders added to this updated roundup.[6][8][9]
Sources
[1] All Basketball live scores: SLB Championship finals, 2 October 2026
[2] Bristol Flyers v Manchester Basketball match centre
[3] Newcastle Eagles 94–68 Bristol Flyers report
[4] London Lions face rapid reset against Leicester Riders
[5] London Lions fall 74–71 at Šiauliai after late EuroCup rally
[6] London Lions 71–66 Leicester Riders – FIBA LiveStats
[7] Game Recap: Bristol Flyers 76–58 Manchester Basketball
[8] Bristol Flyers 76–58 Manchester Basketball – FIBA LiveStats
[9] Newcastle Eagles 91–67 Caledonia Gladiators – FIBA LiveStats
[10] Gladiators Fall to Newcastle Eagles in Battle of the Border