February 2016 Worcester Wolves at London Lions

Worcester Wolves’ recent poor run of form continued ón Tuesday, with a 72-80 setback at London Lions.

While Wolves stay in third place in the British Basketball League, this latest defeat leaves a growing bunch of other clubs snapping at their heels.

The match swung one way and the other. London frequently threatened to draw away from their visitors, only for Wolves to keep closing the gap. However, just three baskets from the field in the last quarter was the final undoing for Worcester.

Former Wolves favourite Alex Owumi began proceedings with a three-pointer and notched a couple more to help his side to an early 20-7 lead.

A 14-2 run, including eleven points for Perris Blackwell, reduced the déficit to 22-21 by the end of the first period.

The second quarter was a similarly tight affair, with another ex-Worcester man impressing. Kai Williams rattled in a tidy eleven second-quarter points to maintain a slender 43-41 Lions advantage.

Wolves would need to dig themselves out of another hole soon after the half-time interval, falling 60-51 behind, before further close-to-the-basket successes for Blackwell once more drew the teams closer at 63-61.

A triple from Jay Couisnard levelled matters at 68-68 with seven minutes to go. But a sprinkling of free throws would be all that Worcester could muster over the remainder of the evening, while their hosts continued to produce.

Couisnard and Blackwell tallied 21 points apiece, while Owumi and Williams led the London scorers.

Coach Paul James was again unhappy with his team’s performance, saying: “Ït was a winnable game that we let pass us by. They shot well from the outside, we struggled to get any consistent production.”

Wolves entertain Manchester Giants this Friday at the University of Worcester Arena, after which there will be a fortnight’s break until they play again with a visit to Leeds Force on Friday 04 March.

“We have to put the last couple of weeks behind us and put things right on Friday,” added James.