London Lions 82-65 Worcester Wolves

Worcester Wolves had no answer for a free-running London Lions side as they fell to a 65-82 defeat in the capital on Friday.

On a night when Wolves struggled to set up in attack and missed a slew of free throws, they also found themselves repeatedly out-rebounded around their own basket. Giving up a dispiriting seventeen offensive rebounds gifted London numerous second-chance points.

Just three minutes had elapsed when Wolves captain Adam Thoseby was forced to take a seat on the bench after picking up two quick fouls. A quiet opening quarter saw Lions edge 16-13 ahead.

Newly-arrived American guard Darell Combs drove coast-to-coast to bring Worcester level at 22-22 by midway through the second period. A few seconds later he connected with a triple but this would be his team’s final first-half production.

A 25-32 shortfall worsened after the interval. Jordan Whelan contributed two of half-a-dozen Wolves three-pointers in the third quarter but no one was able to similarly move the scoreboard on the inside.

London had no such difficulty penetrating to the hoop. Even when their shots went astray their players were invariably first to grab rebounds. Ladarius Tabb typified the host’s dominance when wrenching the ball out of Robert Crawford’s hands for an easy put-back and a 58-43 advantage.

The last quarter saw little change to the balance of power. Even when Worcester managed to get to the foul-line they frequently spurned the chance to lessen the deficit, missing eleven of nineteen charity points and sinking to a 65-82 reversal.

Whelan led the scorers with 18 points. Combs with 12 points and Miki Servera with 10 were the only other Worcester players able to nudge into double figures.

Next up for Wolves will be Bristol Flyers who visit the University of Worcester Arena this Friday 5 October (7.30). Tickets are available here.