Worcester Wolves 99-68 Sheffield Sharks

Worcester Wolves have begun the new year with a bang, demolishing Sheffield Sharks 99-68 at the University of Worcester Arena on Friday.

Putting aside a recent poor run of league results, Wolves now progress to the quarter finals of the BBL Trophy, a competition that saw them win their first piece of silverware in the top flight of British basketball in 2014.

Coach Paul James was delighted to be able to talk about a positive evening, saying: “We’ve always known that we can produce this sort of performance. Its sometimes a mindset that’s needed, understanding that if we all play together, share the ball, and create shots for each other then this will be the result.

“This week in practice we’ve had a lot of stripping things back, getting back to basics and thinking about what we’re trying to do – we’ve now had a reaction and consequently everyone has seen a great game of basketball.”

After five minutes Sheffield were ahead 9-4, but this would be as good as it got for the visitors. Trevor Setty hit a triple and fellow forward Danny Huffor then commenced a dazzling run of four three-pointers to close the first quarter and push Worcester into a 21-15 lead.
Once Huffor took a breath, the rest of Wolves’ squad stepped forward. Maurice Walker twice produced his trademark back-to-the-basket move. As Sharks deployed resources to deal with that threat, Walker’s colleagues pounced upon gaps in Sheffield’s defence.

Ashton Khan zipped to the hoop and Andrew Bachman delivered a quick-fire quartet of scores in a healthy 46-33 half-time advantage.

Four minutes of the second half had elapsed before Sheffield could add to their score. By this time Huffor had re-commenced his torment. Two successes from outside, one on the inside and then a steal at the halfway line followed by an authoritative dunk, brought fans to their feet and saw him bump chests with Setty.

72-47 by the close of the third period was still not enough for a Wolves’ team now overflowing with confidence. Bachman once more took aim from the perimeter, Khan froze defenders with a sublime head-fake and Walker even dared to float the ball home from distance.

Huffor and Bachman tallied season-highs with 31 and 23 points respectively in the tub-thumping 99-68 victory, but James was keen to highlight the origins of their success, saying: “It was all about the team. When players were double-teamed inside we were able to make the most of our chances from the outside. Players had their feet set and shot with confidence.”

Worcester will travel to either London Lions or Surrey Scorchers in the next stage of the competition. “We can beat anyone if we repeat this intensity. As I said to the players – we can achieve whatever we want to achieve if we have the right mindset and we want to do it together,” added James.

The next two weekends will see Wolves on the road at Bristol Flyers and Newcastle Eagles, before returning to the University of Worcester Arena on Friday 27 January to meet Surrey.