London Lions set up a close second leg in the BBL Playoff Quarter Finals after they beat the Cheshire Phoenix in Worcester, 73-66.

The Lions dominated the first quarter; however, the Phoenix came back strong in the second quarter to set up an entertaining final two periods of the game.

The deciding factor as with so many of the Lions victories is their superior three-point shooting and their perimeter defence, as they limited Cheshire to just 2/17 shooting from deep but were able to make 11 of their own to take advantage of their quality from their shooting from behind the arc.

Dirk Williams continues to be ever reliable for the Lions, leading the game in scoring once again with 22, with 15 of those points coming from deep from only 11 attempts.

The other two of the Lions ‘Big Three’ were also contributing all night. Justin Robinson’s experience on this team is only too telling with his performance.

He had a great all-round game with 17 points, 5 assists and 2 rebounds. The only player with more assists than Robinson in this game was Deandre Liggins with 6.

He also contributed with 12 points as well as 7 rebounds. Being the clutch player he is, he also showed his defensive prowess with three big blocks when it mattered the most.

A usual weakness in the Lions game is grabbing the boards, but the top four rebounders of the entire game were Lions players and was topped by Kingsley Okoroh with 9.

Kahron Ross was the headache for Coach Macauley to figure out from the Phoenix, as he led the team in points as well as assists, proving to be the most valuable player for the team as well as the biggest problem for London to solve.

They will be hoping that they have solved it for their second leg fixture on Wednesday night which will be live on Sky Sports, YouTube and the BBL Player.