'We're not scared of him having shots': Atiba Lyons on Sheffield Sharks' three-point sharp-shooter, plus news of recruitment

Four wins in a row have moved Sheffield Sharks to the brink of qualifying for the Super League Basketball Trophy semi-finals, but it is the fact different people have led the scoring on each occasion that most pleases head coach Atiba Lyons.

It was a stunning 39-point performance from Prentiss Nixon at Cheshire Phoenix two weeks ago that ignited Sharks’ campaign but since then other players have stepped to the plate.

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Jacob Groves top-scored with 23 points in the home win over Caledonia Gladiators, against whom Jordan Ratinho led the way five nights later in the return fixture victory up in Scotland.

Then on Sunday against Manchester, early-season acquisition Rodney Chatman scored 21 points, a tally matched by the 53 per cent shooting accuracy of Drake Jeffries.

Attacking the basket: Rodney Chatman III, right, goes up for a two-pointer in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester on Sunday. (Picture: Adam Bates)Attacking the basket: Rodney Chatman III, right, goes up for a two-pointer in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester on Sunday. (Picture: Adam Bates)
Attacking the basket: Rodney Chatman III, right, goes up for a two-pointer in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester on Sunday. (Picture: Adam Bates)

Lyons said: “Start of the season you don’t know how you’re going to respond to adversity and who and where the people will step up, so it’s good to see multiple guys have had their moments and shown a lot of fight.

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“It’s great that over the weekend we had different people step up and play a major role, seeing Drake hit those shots is something you’re seeing week in, week out in practice so it was good to see that translate into the game for him.”

Jeffries, a 6ft 5in shooting guard, attempted 11 three-point attempts in the 89-77 win over Manchester, scoring on six of them.

“We’re not scared of him having that amount of shots, we know he can be prolific how he was that night,” said Lyons, whose team face another double-header this weekend to conclude the group stage, starting against Newcastle Eagles on Friday night.

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Drake Jeffries hit six of 11 from three-point range in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester (Picture: Adam Bates)Drake Jeffries hit six of 11 from three-point range in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester (Picture: Adam Bates)
Drake Jeffries hit six of 11 from three-point range in Sheffield Sharks' win over Manchester (Picture: Adam Bates)

“He needs to get his attempts, to get his shots, to be the best player that he can be.”

Lyons added: “And on both sides of the court Rodney has been a great addition. Defensively he fits in really well with us, and offensively he’s made some great plays when we’ve needed him to and broken some runs and had some great assists.”

Despite the success a lot of the summer recruits are having, Lyons is still in the market for one more player and revealed that a deal could be done before the weekend.

“We’re getting there, we’re circling the block on a couple of guys,” he said.

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