GLASGOW – The London Lions secured a second Women’s Basketball League (WBBL) Trophy in a row, winning by a devastating 72-36 scoreline over the Sevenoaks Suns.
The Hackney-based Lions were narrow favourites heading into the final, though both teams have enjoyed unbeaten starts to the season in the WBBL Championship.
Mark Clark, London head coach, played down his expectations before the game, dismissing the suggestion that the Lions are on their way to becoming a dynasty.
“A dynasty is a huge thing, but we’ll take it one [final] at a time and if we end up with a dynasty then [great],” he said before tip-off.
“We’re looking at a long-term programme, it’s never just a one-off for us. All the off-court stuff you need to be a dynasty, we’re trying to build those, but you’ve got to keep winning to get a dynasty going.”
?2022 WBBL Trophy Champions?
Congratulations! @LondonLions ?#BritishBasketball #WBBLTrophy pic.twitter.com/danTSFpk84
— WBBL (@WBBLofficial) March 20, 2022
Although the Suns kept pace with London through the opening exchanges, the Copper Box Arena franchise raced into a 16-8 lead after the first quarter, which turned out to be an unassailable margin.
Sevenoaks, starting to feel the pressure of the occasion, made a catalogue of errors in the second quarter but stayed in contention, trailing 33-23 at the break.
However, the Lions turned the screw in the second half, with 21-year-old guard Holly Winterburn potting a game-high 16 points for London. Winterburn, selected as Finals MVP, was impressive throughout the game, supplying five assists and six rebounds.
Jo Leedham-Warner, a star player for Team GB and one-time Olympian, also stood out for London, putting up 14 points en route to victory over the Suns.
“Holly Winterburn is a basketball player and I don’t think you’ve seen her best yet,” Clark explained post-game, “all I can say is she can get to the levels of Leedham-Warner.”
Yeah, @hollywinterburn went OFF yesterday ?
Highlights from her MVP performance ?? pic.twitter.com/TmZFCbUK6L
— London Lions (@LondonLions) March 21, 2022
On his team’s performance, Clark added: “We’ve just kept a great team to 36 points. We talked all week about defence. We have talked since [being knocked out of the Women’s Euro Cup] that our defence has to be at a different level and it’s getting better every week.”
London’s defence will come under renewed scrutiny on Friday [25 March], with the Suns visiting the Copper Box in a 16:30 tip-off in the WBBL Championship. With both teams unbeaten in the league, Sevenoaks will be keen to avenge their trophy final loss on their visit to Hackney.
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