Northumbria Surge Into Semis

Team Northumbria host Loughborough Student Riders on Sunday just one win away from the 2017 Playoff final.

Marc Steutel’s men saw off quarter-final rivals Hemel Storm thanks to a convincing 94-75 win at Sport Central.

And the dream treble is still on for the 2017 Division One and National Cup winers.

A strong opening offensive quarter from the home side gave them a 10-point advantage at 24-14 as Hemel struggled to find space around the TN basket.

The second quarter proved more competitive as both sides converted well. However, TN remained ahead at the break to lead 45-41.

An entertaining third quarter saw the visitors pull the score level at 61 apiece before breaking ahead.

However, with the Sport Central support behind them TN took control to lead going into the final quarter.

The hosts showed their winning mentality to take the game in the final quarter and book their place in the semis as Hemel failed to respond and break down a solid TN defence.

Vice-captain Lewis Champion said: “It was a good team win. Everyone played their part as they have done throughout the whole season but now we have to focus our attention on the semis next weekend.

“Defensively we were very good but that has been the case all year and we pride ourselves on being a very good defensive team.

“We rebounded the ball very well and that’s always a main focus for us as a team - to win the rebounding battle.

 “Even though the Storm had some scoring runs and went up for a bit in the third, we did well to contain them and eventually managed to pull away in the fourth to show our dominance.”

Looking ahead to their semi-final clash next weekend, Champion feels confident about the team’s chances of progressing - as long as they stick to their strengths.

 “I think when you have a team that is as deep as ours and we know we are the closest team in the league, it is hard not to be confident,” he added.

“The semi-final game will be tough going up against Loughborough. We have beaten them twice already this season but they are still a very good team.

“We just need to continue being consistent with what we do on the court and make sure we play our style of basketball and we will be fine.”

Sunday’s clash at Sport Central tips off at 4pm.