UCLan Basketball Men take top spot
UCLan's Matt Brown drives for the basket - sprint-photo.co.uk
UCLan 93-78 Chester
A thrilling top-of-the table clash at Foster Sports Centre saw UCLan’s Men’s Basketball team beat the University of Chester.
The 93-78 win, UCLan’s fourth in their opening four games, gives them a three point lead at the top of BUCS Northern Conference Division 2.
Played at a frantic pace throughout, the game was deadlocked until well into the fourth quarter. UCLAn’s superior teamwork and discipline were crucial as they eased to victory with a flurry of late points.
Power forward Dave Collister, UCLan Captain and top scorer on the night with 35 points, was delighted with the win. “We played really well as a team tonight,” he said. “They played tough but we had the edge.”
Disappointed with the unconvincing win against Bolton last week, Coach Craig White was much happier after a confident and composed win. “I’m really pleased,” he said. “It was 100% better than last week. We moved the ball much better and got wide open looks right under the basket. The difference from last week is that we made those.”
UCLan power forwards Joel Augustine and Tom Quigley were both unavailable for the match. Quigley tore ligaments in training and may miss the rest of the season.
Chester, cheered on by their vocal cheerleaders, made an aggressive start to the game and moved into an early 6-0 lead. The home side, led by some brilliant play by Harry Beenham, regrouped and led 23-18 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter was played at a ferocious pace and the teams turned around at half-time with UCLan leading by a single point.
The home side managed to build a nine-point lead in an equally relentless third quarter, but their lead was back to one point after some fine counter-attacking by Chester.
An explosive team effort at the beginning of the fourth quarter allowed UCLan to establish a deserved 13 point lead. Despite a late rally from Chester, UCLan were able to keep them at bay and seal the win in style.
The win gives UCLan a great chance to claim the league title. “It was a very tough, consistent performance,” said UCLan point guard Sean Mahoney. “We worked much harder than them and deserved it more than them. Tonight we kept our heads which is crucial towards winning the league.”
Next Wednesday, UCLan play Bangor University at Foster Sports Centre. Tip-off is at 8pm.
UCLan Men’s Basketball team maintain flawless start
UCLan’s Men’s Basketball team overcame swine flu and a stubborn University of Bolton side to maintain their perfect start to the season.
Coached by Craig Wright, UCLan were in control for most of the game but they had to survive a late Bolton fightback to win 71-65.
The win avenged the defeat to Bolton at the end of last season that effectively ended UCLan’s title challenge.
Despite the result, Wright wasn’t pleased with the performance.
“We were shocking,” he said. “We made it hard work for ourselves. We kept getting in the right situation but we couldn’t finish.”
He was satisfied, however, that the team had extended their perfect start to the league campaign. “It wasn’t pretty but we won. Sometimes it’s nice to play badly and win.”
Shrugging off the effects of a bout of swine flu, Matt Brown was instrumental in the win from the bench.
“Matt played well,” said Wright. “He would normally play a lot more minutes but he got a few blocks and brought us a lot of energy.”
“Ben Eisenhandler did well too,” he added. “He gave us a real offensive threat.”
UCLan looked the sharper and more organised in the warm-up but it was Bolton who made the better start, finishing the first quarter four points in front.
Astonishingly, Bolton appeared to take a 70-40 lead within the first few minutes. The game was stopped momentarily, however, as the scoreboard was adjusted to the more accurate scoreline of 7-4.
In the second quarter, after Ben Eisenhandler had almost cut Bolton’s lead to one point at the end of the first quarter with an audacious attempt from inside his own half, UCLan drew level. The influential Sean Mahoney then scored five quick points to give the home side a lead they would not relinquish.
UCLan made a ferocious start to the second half and, thanks to some rapid attacking and Bolton defensive mistakes, opened up a 20 point lead.
But Bolton would not lie down and, in a frantic finish, they reduced the deficit to four points with just two minutes on the clock. Two late fouls by Bolton allowed the home team to hold on.
Next week UCLan face Chester, who have also started the campaign with three wins and no defeats. Both teams are locked at the league summit. A win for UCLan would see them take top spot outright.
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