Robinson ready for Trophy test

London Lions captain Justin Robinson expects his team to go all out to win the BBL Trophy when they face Cheshire Phoenix in Sunday’s at the Emirates Arena, Glasgow, on Sunday.

“We have a lot of injuries and we’ll miss those guys, but there’s no excuses. We have to go out there and get it done” said the veteran point guard.

After missing several weeks due to injury Robinson is back in a starting role for the Lions due to Isaiah Reese being out of action, and he’s looking forward to the chance of playing a big role in Sunday’s title game:

“Coming back from injury I didn’t have any expectations of playing big minutes, and anyone who knows me will tell you I’m one of the least entitled people you’ll ever meet. But due to the injury issues I need to play a big game."

“I didn’t do well against Manchester on Thursday, I went all-out on defence and didn’t leave enough in the tank for offence, so I need to do a better job managing the tempo. But we’ll move on from that, I’m not the only one a bit banged up at this stage of the season, so I’ll be competing every minute I’m on the court.”

Robinson is clearly determined that Lions will take home the Trophy for a second straight season:

“It’s a big game against a good opponent, but not a lot of teams get the chance to win a piece of silverware and we need to make sure we leave it all out there on the floor” he said.

“They have some really good players. Obviously Teddy [Okereafor] is key for them, but they have Levi Bradley who is a threat we need to key in on. Larry Austin is a dynamic player who will always cause problems but they have a whole bunch of great role players who jump on loose balls, hit big shots and provide great energy, so it’s not going to be easy.

“It’s a final. We won’t be taking anyone lightly.”

Robinson sees a comparison between the two coaches who will be looking to collect the silverware on Sunday:

“Both James [Vear – London coach] and Ben [Thomas] are relatively young in coaching terms and are trying to make a name for themselves. They’re both young, up and coming in the basketball world and will want to get a win on Sunday."

“It should be a great game, and I hope we can come back with the Trophy on Sunday evening.”

Sunday’s game is live on Sky Sports Action, starting at 3.30pm, and if preceded by Lions women facing Sevenoaks Suns in the WBBL Trophy at 12.30pm.