London Lions suffered a heartbreaking 73-72 defeat against Ulm and are now eliminated from EuroCup playoff contention.

London Lions entered with their EuroCup season on the line. Roaring out to a 7-0 lead to start, led by a thoroughly hyped-up Tarik Phillip. The Lions came to play. Coach Sabonis, with a team still ravaged by injuries, rolled out a starting five of Phillip and Shavar Reynolds Jr. in the backcourt and Chaundee Brown Jr, Deane Williams, and Karolis Lukosiunas as the forwards.

This lineup was undoubtedly undersized against their German opponents. Still, they were athletic, fast, and feisty. Both sides regularly employed a full-court press. From London’s point of view, this always required either Phillip or Reynolds Jr. (preferably both) on the floor to handle the ball.

Ulm weren’t fazed by London’s pressure, with the 21-year-old Tobias Jensen playing with the poise of someone 10 years his senior. Danger man and leading scorer, Christian Ledlum, was held relatively in check by an impressive and energetic performance from newcomer Chaundee Brown Jr.

This was a ding-dong matchup

The game was a back-and-forth affair, with neither team able to gain a significant lead. Midway through the third quarter, with the Lions trailing by two, Phillip turned things up a notch. Driving from the top of the key, he rose, cocked the ball back and detonated on Sengfelder’s head. The 2,000 in attendance sounded like 20,000 as the Copper Box exploded. This was as loud as I’ve heard the Copper Box get outside of a buzzer beater.

Whilst the Lions were showing plenty of heart, their execution left a lot to be desired. The one player London had no answer for, magnified by their lack of size inside, was Christian Sengfelder. The big man had 23 points on only 10 shots, his craft under the rim completely beguiling the London backline. They were consistently flummoxed by Ulm’s high-low action, leading to a never-ending stream of Sengfelder layups (23 points on only 10 shots).

Incredibly, London managed to hit only 14 of 28 free throws, which is not good enough for the Medway League, let alone the EuroCup.

As the game moved into the 4th quarter, the tension ratcheted up a notch. Several of the Lions rose to the challenge.

Deane Williams was essential. Hitting threes, dunking, blocking shots, the man known as British Airways stuffed the box score and brought the crowd to its feet for a second time when an Ulm player made the fatal mistake of challenging one of his dunk attempts.

Shavar Reynolds Jr. was game. Pressured all night, he only had one turnover in 33 minutes of action, as well as contributing thirteen points and five assists. Unfortunately, his two biggest contributions were to the Lions’ detriment (more on those later).

Chaundee Brown Jr. was every bit ready for the spotlight. He played with hunger and energy, if a little wild at times. He crashed the boards, defended valiantly and looks to be a keeper.

Tarik Phillip excelled

But from the Lions’ perspective, the night belonged to Tarik Phillip. Coach Sabonis couldn’t keep him off the floor. And when the lights shone brightest, the man they call T-Rex was ready for the spotlight. Pouring in 10 points in just the last four minutes of the game, he put the team on his back, capping his night with a step-back three to put the Lions up by two with just 11 seconds left.

Alas, it wasn’t to be. Reynolds Jr ended up shooting two free throws with six seconds left with the chance to put London up three. He missed both. It was genuinely shocking considering how clutch he was against Besiktas. But still, all the Lions had to do was hold out for another 6 seconds, and the victory would be secured. This is how it ends, right? Right?!

Wrong.

Ulm got the ball to Ledlum, who drove the centre of the lane. He tried a spin move, but Deane Williams put up a decent contest, and the shot was way off. All London had to do was secure the board. Unfortunately for the delirious 2,000 in the Copper Box, Reynolds Jr. failed to box out, and Mark Smith snuck in for a putback. The buzzer sounded, and the Lions’ EuroCup playoff chase was over.

Reynolds Jr. was distraught. Coach Sabonis was in disbelief. The Copper Box went from elation to despair in the space of six seconds. A team riddled with this many injuries was always going to struggle to make noise at this level.

But they did make some new fans. I heard one guy on the way out say to his two friends, “My first game. That was amazing, I’m a Lions fan for life”. For this season at least, that’s all we can ask for.