Loughborough Topple Worthing, NBL Round Up, Week 12 - Hoopsfix.com

Loughborough Topple Worthing, NBL Round Up, Week 12

Lucien Christofis

A number of big games across the NBL in Week 12 saw Loughborough topple Worthing in D1, and Liverpool stay perfect after a top of the table clash with Westminster in D2.

Here’s a round up of all the action:

NBL Division 1

Hemel Storm 80-82 Nottingham Hoods
Nottingham Hoods defeated Hemel Storm 80-82, thanks to a pull up jumper from Delaney Powell with 3 seconds left.

Hemel produced a 15-6 fourth quarter burst to take a four point lead with two minutes remaining, but Nottingham held their composure, going on a 9-0 run down the stretch to claim victory to improve to 5-4.

Hoods Coach Ryan Westley commented: “Wins like this show how tough we can be. Holding our nerve in front of a great crowd and in the face of difficult circumstances, we are just glimpsing our potential.

“Hemel have been a quality outfit for a long time, and I have known a lot of them for many years. It was also great to meet some of the Special Olympics Basketball Club. It’s a great advert for British Basketball.”

Cole Welle had a big game of 21 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocks for Nottingham, with 15 points each from Delaney Powell and Luke Mitchell.

Hemel were led by 18 points from Leome France, with 15 from Blayne Freckleton, 14 from Leon Henry and a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double from Levi Noel.

Hemel Storm’s Head Coach Robert Youngblood added: “The result of this game was firmly in our own hands although you have to credit Nottingham for cashing in on the mistakes we made when we were ahead. It was certainly a game that we expected to close-out and win.

“We had some fantastic contributions by guys coming off the bench throughout the game (combined 36 points) and I thought our defensive intensity and execution was outstanding at times – especially in the last quarter – and this is something we can build on going forward.”

Hemel fell to 1-8 with the defeat.

Box score.

Thames Valley Cavaliers 115-90 Bradford Dragons
Thames Valley Cavaliers caught fire in a 115-90 defeat of Bradford Dragons behind a monster performance from Martelle McLemore.

Cavaliers knocked down five threes in the first 3 and a half minutes to take a 17-0, and ended up knocking down 15 three pointers on 65% shooting, and 71% shooting overall.

McLemore finished with 44 points and 9 rebounds, going 8-of-12 from three point range, dropping 21 points in the first quarter, as Cavs lead 38-20 at the first break to set the tone.

Abdoulaye Sylla added 28 points and 17 rebounds and Aiden Saunders added 15 points.

With Pete Deppisch standing in as Head Coach whilst Bob Banks was away, he commented:

“Stepping in to coach while Head Coach Robert Banks was in the states couldn’t have been a smoother transition,” Deppisch said.

“When your team shoots 71% from the field overall and 65% from threes it makes coaching enjoyable to say the least. To start off the game with a 38 point first quarter, led by Martelle’s 21 first quarter points there’s not a lot an opponent can do. We just couldn’t miss at one point.

“Saying all this, Bradford didn’t go away and I commend their resilience as they fought back and closed the lead at one moment in the game to just six points. It was just one of those games where we were making shot after shot at a high percentage. Hopefully this will continue Saturday in Derby.”

Ricky Fetske and Rihards Sulcs had 23 each to lead Bradford.

Bradford head coach, Chris Mellor added: “We got off to a terrible start but regrouped well. We were back in the game in the third, but it ran away from us again and on the night Thames Valley shot a very high percentage and we just couldn’t match them.”

Box score.

Leicester Warriors 74-84 Team Solent Kestrels
Team Solent Kestrels left it until late to keep their impressive start to the season going with a 74-84 win over Leicester Warriors on the road on Saturday, moving to 10-0 at the top of the table.

Solent spoiled the debut of former GB U20 Raphell Thomas-Edwards, who led his side with 19 points and scored a quick 5 to give Leicester a two point lead with under five minutes remaining. However, a 9-2 Kestrels run put them back in control, before holding Leicester scoreless over the final two minutes of the game.

Team Solent Kestrels were led by Travis Charles’ huge stat line, 24 points, 14 rebounds and 8 assists, while Nick Lewis chipped in 23 points and Elliot Dadds had 14.

TSK Play caller Matt Guymon had this to say after his sides 10th victory in a row in league play:

“Credit to Leicester as they were excellent at both ends of the floor today. We got ourselves in a hole in the 2nd quarter as we struggled to defend the 3 point line. I was proud of our guys and how they responded at the end of the 3rd to get us back in the game and also our composure late in the 4th to secure the win.”

Leicester Warriors guard Martyn Gayle led them with 22 points and 5 assists.

Box score.

Worthing Thunder 71-97 Loughborough Riders
Loughborough Riders scored the result of the weekend with a 71-97 victory over Worthing Thunder, handing them just their second defeat of the season.

Loughborough led from start to finish, using a 9-0 run to finish the half to gain a 14 point cushion at halftime. The lead soon ballooned to 21 in the third and Riders wouldn’t look back.

Lucien Christofis had 26 points to lead Loughborough, Niall Harris had 19 and Hosana Kitenge had 10 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals against his former team. Reis Pinnock pulled in 17 rebounds for Loughborough, who improved to 6-2 in third place.

Loughborough Head Coach Mark Jarram said:

“Solid performance from the group. They delivered and stayed relentless with the game plan and scouting report.

“Big performances again throughout the roster but nice to see Lucien get going and Reis pull in massive 17 rebounds showing it doesn’t have to just be scoring to help impact winning. Good win but we don’t get carried away and move onto the next one.”

Worthing were led by 23 points from Zaire Taylor, and Brendan Okoronkwo had 18 points, as they dropped to 8-2 on the season in second place.

Thunder shooting guard Ishmael Fontaine commented to the Worthing Herald:

“The loss was unfortunate; fair play to the coaching staff at the Riders they really have their guys playing together offensively and defensively.

“They also scouted us very well and caught us on a bad shooting night. However, this is a marathon not a sprint and we will bounce back. I do look forward to that match up in the future.”

Box score.

Derby Trailblazers 79-67 Manchester Magic
Derby Trailblazers ended a three-game skid with a 79-67 over bottom-place Manchester Magic.

Trailing by three heading into the final period, Derby held Manchester to just 1-of-19 shooting in the fourth, winning the quarter 20-5 to pull out the win.

Malcolm Smith continued his dominance with a 32-point outing for Derby, whilst Tre-Shawn Wilford had 11 points and 14 rebounds, and Kayne King had a 10-point, 10-assist double double.

“I don’t think that’s the best we’ve played this season by a long way but it was definitely pleasing to
grind out a win,” said the Trailblazers Head Coach Matt Shaw.

“We struggled on the defensive glass at times which is certainly something we will have to address, as Pouale, Pilkington and Barnes pulled down too many rebounds for our liking.

“Credit to Magic, because they made us battle but we really stepped up our defence over the last twelve minutes or so from being eight points down near the end of the third.

Manchester’s American Jonathan Barnes had 13 of his 23 in the first period, as Derby managed to stifle him as the game went on. He added 10 rebounds for a double-double, whilst Loick Pouale added 18 points.

Box score.

Reading Rockets 94-75 Barking Abbey Crusaders
Reading Rockets used an impressive third quarter performance to pull away from the visiting Barking Abbey Crusaders with a 94-75 victory.

Up six at halftime, the Rockets put on the after-burners in the third quarter as they extended their lead out to 17, scoring 29 points in the quarter, before seeing the game out with a solid fourth period showing.

Rockets’ captain Danny Carter put in one of his best performances of the season to lead Reading with 28 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, while AJ Carr supported with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.

The Barking Abbey effort was a balanced one in this contest, as the Crusaders saw five players hit double figures. Captain Ade Adebayo led with 17 points, while Nathaniel Powell had 13 points. Robin Bedford came off the bench to add 12 points,5 rebounds and 3 assists, while Chris Feeney and Theo Hughes contributed 10 points apiece.

Reading improved to 5-3 on the season; while the Crusaders drop to 3-6.

Essex Leopards 102-74 Team Newcastle
Essex Leopards continued their resurgence with a 102-74 demolition of a short-handed Team Newcastle, for their fourth consecutive win in all competitions.

Newcastle started well, but an 11-0 run sparked by Lee Hodges gave Leopards a lead they would never lose the rest of the way, behind a dominant 34-point, 15-rebound double-double from new signing Asante Sandiford.

Luke Mascall-Wright added 16 points, while Chuck Duru came off the bench to finish with 11 points.

“Today was another fantastic win for us” Essex Coach Tom Baker said. “Defensively we are doing a really good job in forcing poor shots from the opposition and then we are capitalising down the other end.

“Scoring has never been our problem but we shot the ball incredibly well tonight. I don’t think i envisaged us scoring 17 three-pointers in one game but we have the weapons to do it, it was only a matter of time.

“We are building momentum at the right time and I think this shows we are a team that can achieve big things this season.”

Ben Seipt stepped up with 20 points for Newcastle, while Onyekachi Nzerem added 17 points for Newcastle, who were without Tosan Evbuomwan and David Hanson.

Box score.

NBL Division 2

Ipswich 111-109 Greenwich Titans (OT)
Ipswich needed OT to dispatch of Greenwich Titans 111-109, in a game which went wire to wire.

Ipswich led by as many as 17 before a 15-2 Greenwich run got them back into the game to force OT. Colin Dockrell hit a huge three down the stretch and Cameron Hawes converted on the dagger, as Ipswich overcame a monster 47-point, 17-rebound, 5-steal outing from Ray Akpofure.

Hawes finished with 25 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, Ethan Price had 18 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists and 7 blocks.

Box score.

London United 93-79 Myerscough College
London United registered a 93-79 win over Myerscough.

Tomas Burtimas finished with a game-high 27 points and Modestas Krasauskas added 21 for United.

Bradley Kaboza scored 16 points and Mate Okros 13 for Myerscough, who fell to their third straight loss, sitting at 4-5 on the season.

Liverpool 99-93 Westminster Warriors
Liverpool defeated Westminster 99-93 to stay undefeated and move to 8-0 in a top of the table clash in NBL Division 2.

Liverpool closed the game on a 12-0 run to take victory, led by David Ulph who had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Jack Hudson had 16 points and 17 assists.

Justin Hitchman had 30 to lead Westminster, whilst Juan Manning had 23 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists.

Box score.

Sussex Bears 67-71 London Greenhouse Pioneers
London Greenhouse Pioneers defeated Sussex Bears 67-71 on the road to improve their win-streak to five games, improving to 5-2 in third place.

Raji had 18 for Greenhouse, with Rinaloi adding 17. Cordaris Townes led Sussex with 21 points, whilst Sedukis had 13.

Derbyshire Arrows 107-80 London Westside
Derbyshire Arrows secured a 107-80 win over London Westside to snap a four-game losing streak.

Derbyshire poured in 35 points in the second period to take a 20 point lead into the halftime break and never looked back.

Joseph Baugh had 29 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for lead Derbyshire, whilst Callum McKenzie finished two assists short of a triple double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 8 assists.

Levi Edwards and Aaron Noel led six players into double figures for Westside, with 13 each, but they drop to 2-5.

Box score.

NBL Division 3

University of Chester 96-69 Calderdale Explorers
Charnwood College Riders 94-96 Team Derby Spartans
Team Sunderland 95-68 WLV Albion
Team Birmingham Elite 79-74 Sheffield Hallam Sharks
Birmingham Mets 97-90 Sheffield Sabres (OT)
Cardiff City 78-127 London BC Medelynas
Essex Blades 96-51 Oxford Brookes University
Bristol UWE Flyers II 64-51 Cardiff Met Archers
Derby Trailblazers II 112-79 Stoke on Trent Knights

NBL Division 4

University of Nottingham 90-58 Charnwood College Riders II
Mansfield Giants 73-65 Nottingham Trent Hoods
Warwickshire Hawks 81-77 Coventry Flames
Birmingham Mets II 59-75 Northants Thunder
Doncaster Danum Eagles 76-56 Kingston Panthers
Newcastle Eagles U23 83-63 Tameside
London Thunder Lewisham 57-56 Chelmsford Lions
Dorset Storm 81-66 Oxford Stealers
Liverpool Stars 92-82 Cheshire Wire
Barrow Thorns 71-75 Myerscough College II
Richmond Knights 92-72 Westminster Dragons
Hemel Storm II 60-49 Canterbury Christ Church Saints
London United II 91-89 Canterbury Academy Crusaders
Southwark Pride 63-65 Anglia Ruskin University
RCT Gladiators 100-65 Cardiff Met Archers II

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *