London Lions took the bragging rights on a landmark afternoon for British Basketball with victory over Leicester Riders in the Women’s British Basketball League (WBBL) and Men’s British Basketball League (BBL) Cup Finals at Birmingham’s Utilita Arena. 

A sell-out crowd saw two exhilarating finals, with the men's game starting at a frantic pace as the teams traded points in the early stages.

Lions had a narrow lead of just five points after 10 minutes, with former NBA stars Sam Dekker and Kosta Koufos leading the charge.

Dekker and Kimbal Mackenzie were on top form for their respective teams, as a fiercely contested second quarter sprung the final into life and Lions extended their lead to nine. 

The gap grew to 14 heading into the final 10 minutes, but Riders cut the deficit to four points after Lions captain Ovie Soko was ejected after his fifth personal foul.

Dekker’s stunning display earnt him the MVP award and ensured Ryan Schmidt’s Lions would be victorious as he netted quick back-to-back buckets to restore the eight-point lead. 

The American lived up to his reputation to finish with 22 points, nine rebounds, two steals and one assist in a typically dominant display as Lions lifted the BBL Cup for the first time since 2019.

“It’s an important step for us as an organisation and as a team," said Dekker.

"We laid out early in the year the goals we needed to meet and winning this was the first one. Leicester were the BBL champions, so I’m proud of the way we hung in there, that is what championship games are all about, it was a real fight until the end.”

Head coach Schmidt added: “It is an exciting win for us, it was an accomplishment in our sights from the beginning and a lot has gone into today. What we’re doing is not easy, we’ve got a brand new team, we’re playing EuroCup so expectations are high. 

"Tonight is the first time we’ve had a full and healthy roster, even with that you have to find cohesion and chemistry. So today is special for us, it doesn’t happen all the time, so we will enjoy the victory.

“Leicester have championship pedigree, we knew they wouldn’t go down without a fight and to their credit they didn’t, they made it really close. That is what made me most proud, the resilience we showed to weather that storm and come up with big plays when we needed to. It’s a really cool moment for us as a team and an organisation, we are just scratching the surface for the potential we are showing as a group.”

Captain Soko said: “It was a pretty difficult game for us to get into rhythm offensively but that can sometimes happen in championship games. We did a good job on the defensive side to keep their guys at bay. We were able to pull away with a hard-fought win, I’m so proud of the guys.”

The women got the afternoon off to spectacular start as London Lions triumphed to lift the WBBL Cup with a typically dominant display against their Leicester rivals.

Lions dominated throughout, as GB star Holly Winterburn played a leading role for Mark Clark’s side to claim the MVP award with a sublime individual display which saw her score 16 points, nine assists and five defensive rebounds.

For all of their attacking talent, stern defence ultimately gave Lions such a strong foothold, restricting Leicester from any sort of scoring run, as every single member of the active roster contributed points to a resounding 95-42 win.

Lions are unbeaten in 51 domestic matches and the first WBBL team in history to retain the cup, having claimed their fifth consecutive WBBL title.

“We set the tempo from the start, its testament to our practice and preparation and EuroCup experience," said Winterburn.

"We kept playing for the 40 minutes and gave them no chance of winning. There was a lot said before the game, but we did our talking on the court, we’re going to stay at the top and at that level, it’s up to everyone else to come to join us, we will just continue to raise the level.”

Head coach Clark added: “The margin was a reflection of the level of defence we’ve been playing this year and we took that into this game. Leicester are a good team but I don’t think they are used to playing that level of defence. Our team defence and the way we rotate and switch, is testament to the practice each day.

“The quality of our offensive play is down to the way we share the ball, we don’t take many bad shots and that’s testament to the way the players approach the game, they have a great attitude to sharing the ball. The pressure amounts because our expectations of each other is high, but sooner or later records are there to be broken. I hope it becomes a motivation for the rest of the league for them to come out here and beat the Lions!”

Captain Shanice Beckford-Norton said: “We did what we needed to do, and everyone came out to play their best game at both ends of the floor. Offensively and defensively we were super aggressive for the whole 40 minutes and it showed with the result. 

"We were locking in, being aggressive, crashing boards and diving on the floor. That helped us flow into our offence as well. It was a great game for us all around."