Friday 14 October 2016 Worcester Wolves 81-94 Glasgow Rocks

A disastrous second quarter put paid to Worcester Wolves’ chances of overcoming Glasgow Rocks at the University of Worcester Arena on Friday. After building an early double-figure lead Wolves then proceeded to let in a huge 33 points in just ten minutes of play, leading to an eventual 81-94 defeat.

Coach Paul James expressed his disappointment at his side’s defensive shortcomings, saying:

“81 points is enough to win a game if you play proper defense, but we gave up some really soft buckets and showed naiveté at times. If we firstly perform defensively that should create easy baskets for us offensively.

“We started off pretty well, got a good lead but allowed Rocks to stay in the game, find their stride and punish us.”

A trio of three-pointers for Marek Klassen and strong inside presence from Jermel Kennedy were the highlights of a confident start for Wolves. Danny Huffor and Trevor Setty also chipped in to aid a 26-14 advantage entering the last minute of the opening period.

An already-worrying two quick fouls for Kennedy were added to when he tangled with Great Britain stalwart Kieron Achara. With Kennedy now forced off the court, Glasgow’s path to the basket became untroubled. By three minutes into the second period the visitors moved ahead at 28-29 when another GB international Gareth Murray was left unmarked for an easy alley-oop.

Worcester’s embarrassment only increased when Murray froze his defenders with a turnaround dribble to the hoop and Achara powered through for a hefty slam dunk, finalising a 39-52 half-time turnaround.

Rocks maintained their lead throughout the second half. Aside from a brief flurry from Setty and a battling display from reserve forward Andrew Bachman, there was little to threaten Glasgow’s control. Wolves’ starting-five were only able to muster a single score between them in the whole of the final quarter.

Bachman top-scored for Wolves with 24 points, followed by Setty with 14. Achara ran the show for Rocks with 26 points.

Surrey Scorchers will visit the University of Worcester Arena next Friday 21 October, (tip off 7.30pm). “We need to look at the tape of this game, point out the mistakes and be much better defensively,” added James.

Phot credit: Razorlight Imagery.