BBL Trophy first round draw

The first round draw has been made for the new look BBL Trophy competition.

The previous round-robin format has been scrapped in favour of a straight knockout, with the first round games taking place over the New Year period.

It means three non-BBL teams will take part in the competition – City of Edinburgh, London Leopards and Reading Rockets.

Of those, the Leopards have the toughest task, facing Leicester Riders.

BBL newcomers East London Royals and Manchester Giants face Merset Tigers and Sheffield Sharks respectively, while holders Newcastle Eagles face local rivals Durham Wildcats.

BBL Trophy First Round Draw

City of Edinburgh v Glasgow Rocks
Durham Wildcats v Newcastle Eagles
East London Royals v Mersey Tigers
London Leopards v Jelson Homes DMU Leicester Riders
Manchester Giants v One Health Sharks Sheffield
MK Lions v Cheshire Jets
Reading Rockets v Guildford Heat
Worcester Wolves v UCP Marjon Plymouth Raiders

All first round BBL Trophy games will be played between 28th December and 6th January with the winners advancing to the one-legged quarter-final stage.

The semi-finals will be played over two legs ahead of the all-important showpiece 2013 BBL Trophy Final during March.

The full BBL Championship Fixture List will be issued tomorrow (Tuesday) at 11am.