They led Rocks by seven points after winning Friday’s first leg 83-76, despite Glasgow Jr leaving with a hamstring complaint, but were comfortably beaten 72-96 in the deciding game at Ponds Forge.
Lyons said: “We did a great job winning on the road in the first leg, losing a point guard (Glasgow Jr) so early in the game.
“We knew that even from a rotational perspective with the guys being tired and stretched their legs against a high octane team – they score a lot of points – it’s not the best game to miss two key scorers.”
Sheffield trailed their visitors throughout the second leg, but a resurgence in the third quarter saw them reclaim the overall lead before Glasgow pulled away in the final period.
Lyons added: “The way we fought and gave each other a chance going into the fourth quarter, I’m proud of them. I’m proud of my team.”
Johnson and Glasgow Jr averaged 30 points per game between them this season, underscoring their value to the team.
Joe Mvuezolo, Jordan Ratinho, Kipper Nichols and Devante Wallace have all hit double figures in their absence.
But the Sharks, who finished second in the BBL regular season, were let down by poor defense.
“You can see where these guys would have stepped in and had a huge impact for us,” Lyons said of Johnson and Glasgow Jr.
“It goes without saying how much we missed them, but hats off to those who played tonight with Devante, Joe in particular, Kipper, they played with all their hearts.
“It’s hard, you can’t hide that two pieces are missing like that.”
Lyons said he would remember the 2021/22 cohort for their ‘resilience’ and added: ‘They are very, very coachable. When you train players you like, it gets easier.
“This year I liked everyone in the team. People assume that’s normal, but it’s not.”
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Source: www.thestar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-05-02 10:00:27
