Lions win thriller in European opener – Women’s…

Euro Cup Women, Group K
Rutronik Stars Keltern 78-81 London Lions (14-19, 34-30, 59-56)
(Keltern – Skobel 16, Kiss-Rusk 14, Higgs 12; Lions – Leonard 21, Beckford-Norton 19, Breen 19)

An incredible fourth quarter performance from London Lions saw them open their Euro Cup Women campaign with a win over Rutronik Stars Keltern.

Trailing by three going into the final period, a huge effort in the fourth quarter meant the Lions would pick up a memorable win against the reigning DBBL Champions.

After a tense start London hit their rhythm towards the end of the first period, and off the back of a pair of Cassie Breen triples led their German hosts by five points.

Keltern hit back with an 8-0 run of their own to start the second however, and going into halftime held a slender lead over the Lions.

The third period was another tensely fought affair, and Keltern looked to be going into the final period with a sizeable advantage before another crucial pair of threes from Breen brought the deficit to within three points.

The Lions then erupted in the final few minutes of the ballgame, and led by Kennedy Leonard’s game high 21 points secured a famous victory in Germany.

With the game tied at 76 apiece, Johannah Leedham stepped up and buried the three pointer from long range to put London in the driver’s seat with just over a minute left, as the Lions held on for to secure the points.

Breen finished the game with 19 points for London whilst Shanice Beckford-Norton finished the game with an impressive 19 of her own in an incredible night for the Lions and British Basketball.