Saturday 02 March 2013 – Leicester Riders vs Worcester Wolves

Leicester Riders and Worcester Wolves meet at the John Sandford Sports Centre on Saturday evening (tip off 7.30pm), with a place in the BBL Trophy final at stake.

Riders’ coach Rob Paternostro is clearly looking forward to another big weekend in what is arguably his club’s best season in their long history: “We are looking forward to these two games, anytime you are two games away from another final it’s a special time, not only for us but for our fans as well.

“I’m sure we will get great support in Worcester on Friday, and I’m pretty confident that the John Sanford will be rocking on Saturday.”.

Paternostro knows what to expect from the Wolves: “The Wolves are a team that is well-balanced. They have players that are effective both inside and outside and have been playing their best basketball as of late. Alex Owumi has had a very good season for them, he has shown the ability to be able to score in many ways, but what I like about their team is that they have many players that are capable of making an impact every game.”

Riders’ forward Anthony Rowe has no doubt about the importance of this weekend’s games against the Wolves: “All games are important for us at the moment as we’re top of the league, but this weekend is vital and we want to win another trophy.

“I think we’re up against a really good Worcester team. They didn’t make such a good start but they’re coming together now and had a big win against Newcastle in the last round. They’re coming into their own and won’t want to give up the chance of the Trophy without big fight.

“I’m pretty impressed with Alex Owumi, he’s more than just a scorer, and he brings many other things to the table. Sherrad Prezzie-Blue is a great lead on the court and does whatever they need. It’s always tough against them, they’re a really big line-up, and when you’ve got big men who can play, you’re always a major threat in basketball.”