Friday 14th February Worcester Wolves 89-82 Glasgow Rocks

There was a full house at the sports centre at the University of Worcester as over 500 Wolves faithful braved the elements to create a fantastic atmosphere in what for many was a nostalgic event at the Wolves returned to their old  home. The Glasgow Rocks had arrived at Bristol Airport earlier in the day to reduce any risks of delays on hazardous roads in what would have been a long drive south.

Worcester Wolves kept the longest winning streak in the BBL Championship alive, extending it to 11 games with an 89-82 victory against Glasgow Rocks to maintain their place at the top of the league.

Wolves stunned their opponents by building a 13-point lead in the first four minutes of the game, as Alex Owumi and Kalil Irving  led the hosts offensively as they raced to a 15-2 advantage. The second quarter saw a more physical and resilient Rock as and some excellent shooting from  by Gareth Murray with figures of a perfect from 6 attempts and a personal 17 points reduced the deficit as the Glasgow club ended the half only three points behind (48-51).

The start of the second half saw a slump in shooting from both teams with too many missed shots and turnovers. The Wolves did manage to maintain their defensive intensity with Kai and Jamal Williams picking up the pace for the Worcester outfit and the vociferous crowd also started to play their part as they urged the team to stay on top.  The home team managed to maintain a slight edge going into the final quarter of the game but the continuation of winning streak was in the balance at this stage. Will Creekmore made some telling rebounds as his battle of the boards with Daniel Northern was clearly going to be an important factor.

The third quarter saw the rocks start much stronger and Fran Urli had cut Rocks’ deficit to 65-68 at the beginning of the final period.  The  Wolves answered with seven points in a row and it was significant that Zaire Taylor took a leading role and the somewhat ‘out of sorts’ Will Creekmore by his normal high standards started to assert himself at both ends of the court. Alex Owumi who had played well throughout the game also made some telling contributions at the critical closing stages  as the Wolves pressed their advantage to 77-67 with minutes remaining. The Rocks struggled to initiate another comeback and the Wolves secured the vital home win.

The key individual statistics at the close of the game saw Alex Owumi top score for the Wolves with 24 points and impressive double/doubles by Creekmore with 21 points and 16 rebounds and Taylor with 17 points and 11 assists made impressive reading.

All photos are courtesy of Olly Jones