Wolves need to survive for five

Worcester Wolves will shortly return to action after a near-two week break since their last outing, the demolition of Cheshire Phoenix, which extended their BBL winning streak to seven games, and pushed them up to third place in the table. However once the action resumes with a trip to Sheffield Sharks on Friday, this will be only the first match of an intense spell of five games in just eleven days which is set to have a huge bearing on the club’s final league placing.

On Saturday former Wolves forward David Watts and ex-Wolves captain Callum Jones will come back to the University of Worcester with this year’s BBL new boys, the Manchester Giants. The following Tuesday sees Newcastle Eagles come to the city, hoping to maintain their challenge for top spot and also seeking revenge for having been humbled by the Wolves on their own court last month.

Another high-flying side, the Plymouth Raiders, will round off a trio of consecutive visitors to Worcester on Good Friday, before the final part of an exhausting schedule will be a long journey for the Wolves up to Scotland the following Sunday, 31 March, to face the Glasgow Rocks.

If the forthcoming burst of games is not already punishing enough, it should also be noted that not all of Wolves’ players have had the chance to relax during the last fortnight. As well as forming part of the backbone of the BBL squad, Sherrad Prezzie-Blue, Carlos Fernandez, Arnas Kazlauskas, Stan Ocitti and Kalil Irving are all students at the University of Worcester and accordingly are currently taking their places in representing the institution in this week’s British University Championships in Leeds.

On Saturday the University swept aside Brunel 87-69, progressing to meet Durham University in the semi-finals on Sunday. Facing opposition from another side that includes many BBL regulars from the Durham Wildcats, Worcester were eventually able to emerge triumphant 93-84, after a hard-fought contest.

The Championship Final will take place this Wednesday against the tournament host’s, Leeds Metropolitan, when the University of Worcester will be seeking to maintain their dominance in the competition by securing their third successive title.

Worcester Director of Basketball Paul James has dual-responsibility for coaching both the BBL and the University sides and is aware of how he will need to manage his players’ exertions, saying: “The way that Wolves finish off the regular season is crucial in maintaining our momentum going into the playoffs. However, myself and everyone who plays in both squads know that we have to focus on what is happening now, namely the chance for the University of Worcester to once again secure a championship and keep such a fabulous record of success going. After Wednesday we will then fully turn our attention to the BBL. Five games in not much more than a week will likely be a grueling schedule, but I am confident that we can cope with that if we again focus on one game at a time, the one that is in front of us on that day.”

The club has announced special ticket deals for the visits of Manchester and Plymouth; on Saturday against the Giants one child will be admitted free to the University of Worcester with each full-paying adult; on Good Friday versus Plymouth two adults can get in for the price of one.