The
Wolf Pack Wins Again
Coventry Crusaders
came up against a wolf pack on Saturday that they just could not tame. The Crusaders
put in a great first half effort, trading basket for basket with Worcester, but during the
course of the second half they could not keep the pace.
During
the frenetically fast paced first quarter, the Crusaders and Wolves kept up with each
other. Crusaders led most of the time, but
the Worcester side were right behind them and never let them get comfortable.
Crusaders
Alaster Spiers was the secret weapon that Wolves had no answer for and he scored at will
from his inside position as the Crusaders went to him time and time again with the ball.
By
the end of the first quarter Spiers had already scored 12 of Crusaders 20 points, but
Wolves’ combined effort had edged ahead of the Crusaders to lead with 21 points.
In
the second quarter things settled down to a more controlled pace with more offences run
and the game, although still intense between the two sides, looked more organised.
For
the Wolves Peter Garrett matched Spiers earlier performance with easy baskets including a
few Slam Dunks thrown in. He scored 12 points
in the second quarter alone, keeping the Crusaders slightly off balance.
When
Captain Derrick Pope limped off court sidelining himself, supporters could be excused for
wondering if the outcome of the game could be guaranteed without him, such is his
experience and importance to the team.
Shortly
after, however the Crusaders fans erupted when, with just over a minute left in the half,
Ed Baynes Clarke hit a basket that put Crusaders up by one.
Although
the lead changed several times in those last seconds, the score was all tied at the
halfway point 39-39 - a very encouraging sign for the team going into the break and for
their loyal supporters.
The
third quarter turned out to be a typical Crusader third quarter nightmare, as it was over
two and a half minutes into the quarter before they scored their first basket and another
three minutes before the second basket was scored.
Worcester
in the meantime, had been on a scoring campaign and by now had acquired a fourteen point
lead and looked on the verge of blowing the home team out of the water.
Crusaders
regrouped, however, and once they started scoring, made up for lost time. They clawed their way back into the game, with
Spiers, Larry Graves and Dip Donaldson making their mark on it.
Crusaders
had made up lost ground by the end of the quarter, and were only down by 5 points (56-61)
and felt they were still in with a fighting chance of taking the game.
The
fourth quarter ran in much the same way as the third quarter except for the arrival of
Wolves Dave Jones on court that made the Crusaders defence look less than capable as his
shots slid through the basket like silk.
The
Crusaders struggled to maintain their form, allowing the Wolves to gradually slip ahead. They did resurge and cut the lead considerably,
but in the end the Worcester side regained control and kept it that way.
Pope
never did check back into the game but sat on the sidelines with an ice pack on his
injured knee - not a sight Crusader fans are used to seeing.
Without
the veteran the team had enough talent to carry on but on the night what was needed was a
good solid performance from all the players, and they were lacking, in that not everyone
turned up on form.
Worcester
won the game 83-70 but still had to wait until the result from Sunday’s fixture
between NW London and Liverpool to know if their current second place would improve to
League Champions.
The
outcome of the game did not affect Crusaders position, as they maintain their fourth place
finish in the league and will have home court advantage for the quarter-final play off
game next Saturday.
Crusaders:
Spiers
24, Graves 15, Collins 9, Baynes Clarke 9, Donaldson 7, Pope 4, Spare 2
Worcester:
Garrett
20, Chiverton 14, Shaw 14, Cooprider 12, Jones 12, Robinson 6, Edmondson 3, Prince 2
