Milton Keynes Breakers begin their KitKing Trophy exploits this weekend as they face both City of Birmingham Rockets and Bristol Hurricanes in a weekend double-header.
The 2024/25 KitKing Trophy is for teams partaking in Basketball England’s NBL Men’s Division One plus three invited NBL Division Two sides. Barking Abbey, London Elite, and Team Solent Kestrels will all partake in the competition alongside all 13 NBL 1 clubs.
The competition will for a third season be organised by NBL1 Men’s clubs in partnership with naming rights holder Kitking.co.uk and BE. Derby Trailblazers will be looking to defend their title – with MK Breakers looking to better their Quarter-Final performance that they achieved in the 2023-24 season.
The group stages of the competition will be played on the weekends of September 14/15 and September 21/22, with the 16 contenders split into four groups of four teams.
First up, it’s the City of Birmingham Rockets on Saturday evening with a 7:30pm tip-off. Martyn Gayle and Orlan Jackman have both returned for the 2024-25 campaign, with Zack Powell joining from Reading Rockets and Luke Okosieme who returns after a year with Surrey Scorchers in the BBL.
Gayle, who is a fan favourite in Birmingham, averaged 13.6 points per game last season and placed inside the top 10 for three-point percentage with 43.2%, Jackman, meanwhile, placed second in NBL Division 1 for total rebounds with an impressive 11.4 per game.
City of Birmingham placed ninth in NBL Division 1 last season but were just four points off a play-off finish and will be a strong competitor once again this year in the same division.
Attention then turns to Sunday’s clash at Bletchley Leisure Centre as MK Breakers host Bristol Hurricanes at 5pm. Like MK Breakers, the Hurricanes were promoted from NBL Division 2 last season, losing just twice in the North Division.
The Hurricanes have recruited well for NBL Division 1, with returnees Daniel Edozie and Panos Mayindombe, as well as another pair of ex-BBL players in Sol Rolls-Tyson and Chris Taylor.
Billy Beddow-Patel, MK Breakers Head Coach, shared his thoughts ahead of the upcoming KitKing Trophy fixtures against NBL Division 1 sides City of Birmingham Rockets and Bristol Hurricanes, “Facing two strong Division 1 teams like Birmingham Rockets and Bristol Hurricanes will be a great litmus test for us. These games will give us a real sense of where we stand as a team and what we need to keep improving on. Both sides are well-coached and bring a lot of quality, so it’s a fantastic opportunity for our players to compete at that level and see how we measure up. We’re looking forward to the challenge and using these games to sharpen ourselves for the season ahead.”
