Friday 21 November 2014 Sheffield Sharks 76-78 Worcester Wolves

Worcester Wolves’ Head Coach Paul James was in ecstatic mood after seeing his charges overcome Sheffield Sharks following a last-gasp Chavis Holmes basket on Friday.

The 76-78 win only came about once his side had propelled themselves back into contention after initially falling behind by a massive 16 points. James eagerly related the game-winning final few moments:

“Sharks had the chance to go ahead with ten seconds to go, before Chavis produced an unbelievable block on one of their big guys. Jamal (Williams) then missed a long two at the other end, but Chavis was the first player to get to the ball, laying it in to seal the win. Chavis is a class act. I’m elated.”

This latest triumph hoists Wolves to the top of the British Basketball League, but they looked far removed from a Championship-winning side in the early part of their visit to Sheffield. Sharks’ point guard BJ Holmes directed matters in the first quarter, picking out forwards Olu Babalola and Patrick Horstmann for easy scores and accumulating eight points of his own. Meanwhile, a series of careless turnovers prevented Worcester from building their own side of the scoreboard.

Sheffield’s lead maximised at 28-12 as the second quarter opened, prompting Wolves’ captain Alex Owumi to draw a line in the sand. Firstly he was on hand to tip-in a Remi Dibo miss. He then made only his second basket of the evening, before roaring to a further ten personal points in the remainder of the first half. By now it was the Sharks’ turn to struggle offensively as their visitors pulsated to a 40-41 interval lead.

The momentum stayed with Wolves after the break. Owumi nailed consecutive triples while his backcourt partner Holmes took care of setting up plays. Clever assists for Dibo and for Disraeli Lufadeju to sink long-range scores were the feature of a third period which ended with Worcester in front at 59-67.

Sharks clamped down defensively to hold Wolves scoreless for the opening three minutes of the last period, with a Horstmann score restoring a 68-67 lead. Sheffield kept their noses in front until the final two minutes of the contest, when a jumper from Williams made it 75-76. BJ Holmes levelled it from the free-throw line, before his namesake from Worcester provided the late action that edged the win and sent his coach and colleagues into dances of delight.

Paul James described how his team achieved the victory: “I’m so delighted at the character the players showed to turn the game around after such a poor start. We were struggling to score and we were struggling on defence. I knew we had to mix things up, so decided to go with a smaller line-up. This meant that we were the quicker team, and made all the difference.

“Year on year it’s always been tough to come to Sheffield and take a win, but I’m just so pleased at the application and effort from everyone on the team tonight, and to see the depth that we have on this squad.”

Owumi led all scorers with 24 points, including six three-pointers, supported by Holmes and Williams, with 19 and 12 points respectively.

The next outing for the Wolves will take place this Friday at the University of Worcester Arena versus Bristol Flyers. Bristol produced an upset a few weeks ago when knocking Wolves out of the BBL Cup. James is confident that there will be no let-down from his team next week, saying: “This time we need to be ready to play from the start. Doug Herring, who top-scored against us last time, is now out injured, but we will not let this affect what we do. It’s fantastic to be at the top end of the league table, but we will need to perform to our best to stay there.”