Paul James pays tribute to Worcester fans

Worcester Wolves Director of Basketball Paul James is keen to thank the public of Worcester for the support they have shown to his side this season in their rise to the top of the British Basketball League.

In particular, James wants to thank supporters who travelled to Leicester on Saturday to urge the Wolves on to a stunning 69-62 victory, and to thank all the people who came along to the University of Worcester Arena on Friday, only to see the game disappointingly postponed.

“The way the city of Worcester has got behind the Wolves this year has been immense. We had a capacity crowd at the new arena for our first game there, and have been close to capacity in each game since then”, said James.

“It is only right that we reward such support with success. Like everyone else, I was extremely disappointed that Friday’s match had to be called off. It is fitting that the players did their best to ease some of that disappointment by pulling off such a fabulous win at Leicester the next day.

“In my four years at the Wolves it is only the second time that we have come away from Leicester with a meaningful victory, and the first time the Riders have lost a league game there in nearly two years. I’m really happy for the players and for all of our supporters who saw the match, and everyone else that has come along to back us at the arena this season. I can certainly tell you that when the fans make a lot of noise it transmits to the team and gives an extra lift to our performances.”

Referring to the specifics of the Leicester victory, James described what took place: “In the first half we struggled a little, not sharing the ball enough. But in the second half it was all about sharing the ball, with players trusting each other and giving us the chance to win.

“We are all about trying to get multiple stops on defence, not just trading baskets. We did that well in the last quarter. When we really needed it there were some fabulous defensive efforts. Kalil Irving came in off the bench and did fantastically well, as did Daniel Belgrave. What they did defensively, and the hustle they provided, was outstanding.”

Looking ahead to another match on the road versus another title contender, this Friday at Newcastle Eagles, James spoke confidently: “We’ve just had consecutive wins at two tough courts, at Glasgow and now at Leicester. This latest game means we have grabbed the head-to-head over Riders. We’ve already won once in Newcastle, a few weeks back, and will now have the chance to seal the head-to-head over them as well.”

Wolves President Mick Donovan was keen to echo James’ delight, and also to repeat his gratitude to supporters who came to the match against Surrey only to see it postponed due to the visitors encountering traffic problems, saying: “Everyone at the club was keen to try to repay the people who were let down on Friday, and I hope this win goes towards that debt. This type of occurrence is very rare and was something outside of our control. We’ll be back at the University of Worcester Arena in a couple of weeks and I want to re-assure everyone that the club is very aware of just how important the spectators are to our success.”