Worcester Wolves 77-73 Northants Titans

Saturday 30th September 2023

By Colin Taylor

Worcester Wolves produced a stunning second-half comeback to open their   National Basketball League Division Two season in successful fashion against Northants Titans and delight fans at the University of Worcester Arena on Saturday.

Northants waltzed to a comfortable 42-24 half-time advantage and still held sway at 73-66 with just three minutes to go before a thundering eleven unanswered Worcester points lit up proceedings and brought a big crowd to their feet to applaud a thrilling 77-73 victory.

Wolves coach Dean Blake beamed as he paid tribute to supporters for helping his side pull out the win.

“There were no smiles from anyone at half-time and, to be honest, my smile now is one of relief,” declared Blake.

“The guys played well at the end but there is now way in the world we would have won this game without our fans pushing us over the line. They were amazing today.  We’re so fortunate to have support like this in Worcester.”

A quick seven points from Emmanuel Yeboah drove Wolves into an early 10-3 lead. Tom Grayling joined the action to contribute a similarly swift couple of scores and bring matters to 14-5 by midway through the first quarter.

But Titans had their own new entrant to the court making an impact as Taiwo Hamilton served up a bagful of points and assists to propel the visitors 23-18 ahead entering the second period.

Northants now placed a lid over their own basket and grabbed numerous offensive rebounds at the other end to accumulate a healthy half-time cushion.

Humberto Ferreira set the tone for a transformed Worcester team immediately after the break, flying forwards to clean up an errant shot and provide an easy put-back for Yeboah.

Daniel Molloy engaged with Yeboah for further output and Jacob Dearman now found his shooting boots as he repeatedly connected from three-point range, slashing the Titans advantage to just 60-54 by the close of the third quarter.

A Yeboah layup finally nudged Wolves noses in front at 74-73 in the last minute of the evening. A succession of free throws rounded out the comeback success.

Yeboah and Dearman led the scoring with 24 and 13 points respectively.

Wolves face a doubleheader of action next weekend. On Saturday 07 October, (tip off 2.30pm), Wolves travel to Bristol United. On Sunday (5pm) they return to the University of Worcester Arena for their opening fixture in the National Cup against Stockport Falcons.

“We played with heart today,” said Blake. “And that’s ultimately what got us the win. We’ll learn from what happened today and look to improve for next weekend when we travel to Bristol and when we come back here against Stockport.”