Basketball: Duck keeps Bears unbeaten

Nick Nurse's men trailed by five points late in the first half to a Newcastle side who were looking the best opposition they have faced this year.

That all changed in an astounding third period which featured runs of 9-0, 15-0 and 9-2, included ten points in just over three minutes from Duck and saw a Newcastle fan ejected for her protests as the whole thing reached boiling point.

A euphoric Burgess Hill crowd were on their feet for a third period sparked into life by a technical foul for Nurse which outraged the home side.

Bears took the quarter 41-23, even though they conceded the first and last points, but Nurse admitted it had taken something special to shake off the Eagles.

The Bears chief said: "They are definitely the best team we have played. Take out a five minute completely wild spell and they probably outplayed us for the majority of the game.

"When we opened it up and ran them around we produced that little burst which won us the game but we have a lot to learn.

"We had to put in some serious work. I thought for the first time our offence got sticky, which meant they held on to the ball and went one-on-one for no reason.

"Randy was good from start to finish. He was up and the down the court all game but in the first half he was doing it all by himself because our guys weren't focussed.

"If you are going to play with Randy you've got to be in shape and be able to run if you want to get some easy baskets."

Duck shot ten of 17 two-point attempts, three-of-six threes, had ten assists and was not too far from a triple double with seven rebounds.

Alongside him, Sterling Davis sank eight of 13 two-pointers while Rico Alderson had a game-high 14 rebounds as Bears won the boards battle 48-31.

British League followers love to debate who is the best point guard in the league, with Newcastle's TJ Walker and Chester's John Thomas most often touted.

Duck, critics argue, does not run the game like a classic point guard.

Well if that means he does not just selflessly dish out assists but can also shoot from all areas, drive to the basket, rebound, dunk, fire up the crowd and be a bit greedy when required, Bears fans will have no complaints.

He certainly ran the show on Saturday in his own flamboyant style.

Niki Arinze pushed him close, shooting at 61 per cent from the floor, and will be a threat when these sides meet at the Brighton Centre next Sunday for what should be a spicy cup quarter-final.

Newcastle will fancy their chances on the evidence of a first half which they shaded 51-49.

Duck needed just 13 seconds for his first assist, sending Wilbur Johnson in for a dunk, but Eagles pegged back an early seven point gap to just 24-23 at the break thanks to Arinze's three-pointer on the buzzer.

They led for much of a second quarter which was held up for nine minutes when a basket collapsed after a couple of hefty Newcastle dunks.

Arinze led a 7-2 run late in the quarter but Duck had the final word, running the clock down and unleashing a three on the buzzer to cut arrears to two points.

That was a taste of things to come. Bears' first 13 points of the third were either scored by Duck or set up by him for Davis as the momentum shifted.

Even when Davis missed a free throw, Duck claimed the rebound and set up Alderson to score.

Duck then took the defensive board when Walker missed and unleashed a length of the court pass for Davis to score.

Emiko Etete came off the bench for five successive points as Bears took a 90-74 lead by the end of the third.

Successive Duck strikes and a Davis three-pointer led a 9-2 opening to the fourth.

Arinze's dunk took him past 30 but Alderson responded with nine points in the last three minutes and Bud Johnston finished it in style with a smart move to the hoop for the final two.

Good stuff from the Hove teenager, but it was Duck's night.

Bears: Duck 32, Davis 25, Blalock 15, Johnson 14, Alderson 13, Etete 10, Brown 8, Johnston 2.

Newcastle: Arinze 33, Walker 20, Mavis 14, Smith 13, Hyatt 11, Bridge 8.