Sadly, the league's involvement in the BBL Trophy has ended for another year, with Solent bowing out of the competition after a loss to Surrey on Friday.
The Kestrels bounced back in NBL1 action on Saturday though, as Bradford, Hemel, Newcastle, Thames Valley, Reading and Essex also picked up wins.
There's a recap of the weekend's games below, and each result is also clickable if you wish to view the live stats.
Hemel's Bode Adeluola channelled his inner-Luke Nelson to score a late lay-up for the Storm, pushing them to a narrow 79-76 win against Loughborough.
Adeluola's bucket with seven ticks remaining put the visitors up by four at 77-73, helping to stave off a Riders fight back as the hosts tried to overturn a double-digit deficit as the fourth quarter began.
Cometh the hour, cometh the man: it means that no matter what the situation; a man will appear who can turn the tide and win the contest.
— Hemel Storm (@hemelstorm) February 21, 2021
Alternative meaning: @Bodeisel.
🎥: @BblFix.#ItsStormSeason🌩 pic.twitter.com/SuGgEwzg3O
Hemel had led by as many as 17 with 2:28 left in the third, but Loughborough would draw level halfway through the final frame.
A late Greg Wild triple would make it a single point game with two seconds on the clock, but that's as close as coach Jarram's side would come as American Greg Poleon iced the game from the line.
The defeat was another agonising one for the Riders, who have now dropped five of their nine losses this year by three points or less.
Adeluola finished on 20 points, supported by Poleon (22pts, 8reb) and Tayo Oyefusi (13pts, 15reb).
Jonas Dieterich and Greg Wild both finished with 21 points for Loughborough, with Dieterich adding 11 boards for the double-double and Wild going a solid 8-15 from the floor (4-8 3pt).
Saturday began with Worthing Thunder picking up a valuable victory away to Bradford Dragons, winning 87-73.
The visitors broke the game open thanks to a 25-14 third quarter, with Jack Sunderland and Zaire Taylor both scoring 18 points.Â
Essex Rebels' lengthy trip to Team Newcastle University was in vain as they went down 100-85.
After starting brightly, Essex faded in the second to lose the quarter 34-13. Newcastle's lead would dip as low as four points in the final frame, but that was as close as the Rebels would get.
Brandon Federici was the star man for the North East side, shooting 12-16 (6-10 3pt) to finish with 31 points and nine assists. Emmanuel Kabengele was also on form, shooting a perfect 11-11 to drop 25 points.
In a highly anticipated affair at the top of the table, Thames Valley comfortably saw off Derby Trailblazers, winning 90-65.
In a battle between two high-powered offences, the Trailblazers failed to fire as they trailed by more than 20 points for the majority of the second half.
American Taylor Johnson caught the eye for the hosts, finishing with 30 points and 10 rebounds.
TVC dominate Derby in the top of the table clash#BritishBasketball pic.twitter.com/Z5DoAKy5cv
— bbl fix (@BblFix) February 20, 2021
Team Solent Kestrels moved to 9-0 on the road in East London, beating BA London Lions 80-64.
Solent's Travis Charles went 8-9 to finish with 22 points, adding eight rebounds for good measure, Jase Harrison and Edrick Okunola both had 15 points for BA.
On Sunday, Reading Rockets got their record back to .500 as they knocked off Oaklands Wolves 98-77.
With the scores tied at 62-62 with 3:27 remaining in the third, the visitors would outscore the Wolves 36-15 the rest of the way to win at a canter.
AJ Roberts' 22-point, 15-rebound double-double for the hosts wouldn't be enough as seven Rockets all scored nine points or more, led by Leome Francis with 19.
The weekend closed with Essex claiming a 95-82 win over Nottingham Hoods in the second leg of their weekend road trip.
Jordan Gray's 21 points and 10 boards helped power the visitors, who won the first quarter 29-13 to set up the win.
Gray spins and scores
— bbl fix (@BblFix) February 21, 2021
🎥 @hoodsbasketball pic.twitter.com/P1XwQdxERd
There will be no repeat of Solent's fairy tale run to the BBL Trophy final this year as they were beaten 82-73 by Surrey on Friday evening.
NBA draft pick and GB international Ryan Richards was in strong form for the BBL side, coming off the bench to score a team high 15 points on 7-10 shooting.
A 19-10 second quarter left the NBL side trailing 43-32 at the half as coach Guymon's side were forced to play catch up the rest of the way.
The Kestrels pulled within five in the third quarter before the difference hovered around double-digits until the final buzzer.
Solent's Orlan Jackman was a rebound shy of a double-double with 20 points and nine boards as Ian Smith, Travis Charles and Andre Arissol all scored 14.
Richards was supported well by former NBL stars Cam Hildreth (14pts) and Martelle McLemore (11pts).
The Scorchers now move on to play either Worcester or Plymouth in the semi-final.
Ryan Richards (@ryanr1chards) was a huge spark off the bench for the @surreyscorchers on Friday. The big man led the Scorchers in scoring (15pts, 7-10fg) in just 17 minutes of action.
— bbl fix (@BblFix) February 20, 2021
Cover photo + 🎥 - Scorchers#BritishBasketball pic.twitter.com/4WXJGhqIt9
6pm - Surrey Scorchers 82-73 Team Solent Kestrels -Â LIVE STATS/WATCH VIA BBL PLAYER
Saturday 20 February
2pm - Bradford Dragons 73-87 Worthing Thunder -Â LIVE STATS
2:30pm - Loughborough Riders 76-79 Hemel Storm -Â LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
4pm - Team Newcastle University 100-85 Essex Rebels -Â LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM LOCATION
4pm - BA London Lions 64-80 Team Solent Kestrels -Â LIVE STATS
6:30pm - Thames Valley Cavaliers 90-65 Derby Trailblazers -Â LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
3:30pm - Oaklands Wolves 77-98 Reading Rockets -Â LIVE STATS
5pm - Nottingham Hoods 82-95 Essex Rebels -Â LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM LOCATION
Main image credit - Joanne Charles
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