CWBA prove too strong for Warwickshire Bears
WARWICKSHIRE Bears WBC’s return to BWBL Premier Division action ended in a 71-29 defeat to visiting CWBA.
The game, which was streamed live on the BBC website and attracted more than 200 supporters, was one of the Bears’ biggest events to date.
From the tip off CWBA raced to an impressive lead, playing some slick basketball whilst containing Bears offence and dominating at the both ends of the court.
With the talented Peter Cusack running the court and scoring at will, and the impressive Jake Robinson finding his long range shot, CWBA had the game wrapped up in the first half with the scores at 35-4 to the visitors.
The second half was all about pride for the Bears and at last they were able to free their main threat, Daz Peasley, whilst Dan Gill also found space to boost the Bears’ score.
With a bench full of GB Women and U23s at his disposal, coach Alistair Hope was spoilt for choice and was able to give run outs for all his players and see out the game.
Despondent coach Tom Masterson said: “Congratulations to CWBA and their coach Ali Hope.
"We were totally outclassed, but when you see the team we were up against, I can’t be too hard on my team.
"As the rookie side, this season has been tough, but we are working hard to learn from this experience and to strengthen as a team.
"Looking beyond the score, it was more than this game and I am so proud to have been able to showcase our brilliant club.
"Hopefully this will really put us on the map and attract some new players for the future.
"Maybe some of them will be the new GB players of the future.”
There were better fortunes for the Bears’ second string in Division Two South as they ran out 56-20 winners over visiting Norwich Lowriders.
The first quarter saw both teams found it hard to adjust to a new court as they struggled to find their rhythm. With both teams unable to find their shooting range, the scores at the end of the first quarter saw Bears have a narrow 8-4 advantage.
The Bears came out in the second quarter with a feel for their new environment, and they soon began to run up a healthy lead. At the other end, Lowriders were unable to find any consistency in the shooting. At the half-time buzzer, the Bears were 25-12 in front.
The Bears brought the same winning form into the second half, setting up a mean defence and limiting Lowriders at their basket. Bears entered the last quarter with a 46-16 lead.
The last quarter was an easy run out to the final buzzer with both teams giving their squad the run of the floor.
Coach Daz Peasley said: “A bit of a slow start, but I’m not sure if that was the new venue or the occasion, but we eventually woke up and got a good win against a good side.”
