Basketball: Durham League

Four baskets from Gary Simpson, a couple from Steve Johnson and a three-pointer by Arran Hope gave Nissan 15-0 burst between the third and six minutes of the opening quarter for a 17-2 cushion which left Hornets playing catch-up basketball for the rest of the game. The first break allowed Hornets to re-group and they won both the second and third quarters at 27-24 and 24-22, thanks mainly to a hatful of three-point baskets from Leon and Luke Thompson. They could not however make inroads into the deficit as Hope and Ian Barrow in the second and Lee Davie and Simpson in the third were always able to keep Nissan ahead which they were at 72-63 with ten minutes left on the clock. The last quarter was all Nissan as a 23-8 surge in the first eight minutes stretched their lead to 95-71.

Teamwork was the key for Nissan as six players netted double figures; Barrow (22), Hope (20), Simpson (19), Johnson (13), Chris Maddison (11) and Davie (10). Luke Thompson led Hartlepool HQ Engineering Hornets with 28 points as brother Leon got 22, Stuart Anderson added 10.

Willington Wasps scored a 87-67 win over guests Belmont Reds in the only other division one fixture of the week.

The contest started at a frantic pace and thanks to Paul Campbell and Ben Scorer, Wasps just had the better of a first quarter which closed at 20-13. Andrew Knox and Steven Graham had started well for Belmont and they kept the momentum going until a good finish to the half from Neil Baxter and Chris Rennison-Rae inflated Wasps cushion to 44-33 on the interval whistle. The third quarter was decisive. It opened with Simon Lloyd hitting the target and finished with Scorer and Campbell outscoring their guests by two baskets to one and by the time the ten minutes finished Wasps were free and clear at 70-44.

Five players hit double figures for Willington Wasps; Scorer (19), Campbell (18), Lloyd (13), Baxter (12) and Rennison-Rae (11). Knox, Graham and Richard Huntley all did well for Belmont Reds with 19, 13 and 11 points respectively.

The big game of the second division week took Hartlepool Hawks ND north-west to meet Consett Steelers. Both teams went into the game knowing that defeat would probably end any title aspirations and in the end it was Steelers who rose to the occasion to win 84-64.

A pair of three-point baskets from Leon Thompson opened Hawks account and helped give them a 16-7 cushion after seven minutes. All changed in the next three minutes as Steelers defence got a grip and the first break came all-square at 18-18. A barrage of missed long-range shots from Hawks were turned into rebounds and fast-breaks by Steelers as Brendan McNeaney and Matt Patterson gave them the lead at 41-35 after twenty minutes. The third phase was all Steelers as Hawks were restricted to just 12 points. At the other end of court, fast passing and running allowed Steelers to snap up lots of chances and with ten minutes to play they were in charge at 60-47.

Consett Steelers match-winners were McNeaney, Mark Ewen and Patterson who scored 24, 18 and 16. Luke Thompson, Leon Thompson and Anthony Robinson shared all but two of Hartlepool Hawks points with 24, 21 and 17 apiece.

After struggling early in the season Middlesbrough College Academy B are finishing their campaign in style and this week they notched another win at 85-79 away to Durham Saints.

Academy opened the game with a full-court, man-for-man defence, a tactic which brought instant reward and a 20-8 lead by the eighth minute. It then took a Colin Lishman charge to close the gap to 25-19 as the first quarter finished. Academy led 46-39 at the interval and a scrappy third ten minutes turned that into 65-58 cushion. All changed in the last quarter as seven points from Lishman in an 11-0 spurt gave Saints the lead for the first time in the game at 73-71. Michael James hit back for Academy, before Craig Sowerby restored Saints lead at 79-77 with three straight baskets. Saints did not score again as Academy powered home through Cameron McGrain and James.

Points were well spread throughout the Middlesbrough College Academy side and four hit double figures; James (21), Francis (16), Colmer (14) and McGrain (14). Lishman was outstanding for Durham Saints with 43 points as Chris Plummer and Sowerby added 14 and 10.

East Durham and Houghall College A kept their faint championship hopes alive with a 138-46 demolition job on the luckless Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics A at Peterlee.

Hydraulics once again travelled with only five players, only one of which was a regular start five player, and it showed as Andrew Bains on the fast-break and Colin Dockerell inside simply took the visitors apart in a 32-10 opening quarter. Full-court, man-for-man pressure generated turn-over after turn-over and a 36-11 second quarter offered Hydraulics no hope at all. Colin McEvoy and Mark Vickers did the damage in the ten minutes before half-time and a trio of Dockerell 'dunks' only served to increase the pain of a 30-13 third quarter and a 40-12 finish.

Bains led the East Durham and Houghall College A charge with 40 points as Dockerell and McEvoy added 36 and 30 respectively, Vickers chipped in with 16. Paul MacDonald and Jonathan Osborne did hit 24 and 11 each for Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics A.

Experience winning over youth proved to be the catch-phrase as Shildon Strollers scored a 69-56 win at Willington against Specsavers Wear Valley Wolves.

Strollers began to take charge in the second quarter, after an even opening ten minutes had scored 16-ten in their favour, courtesy of Mal Turnbull and Mal Ballard. Tight defence meant that Wolves were restricted mainly to outside shots and when half-time arrived Strollers led 38-21. The third quarter was Wolves best and the deficit was down to just 50-41 as it finished. The final phase was all about experience as Strollers slowed the game and picked Wolves off.

Turnbull and Ballard shared the limelight with 24 and 23 points apiece as only Martyn Hirst collected double figures for Specsavers Wear Valley Wolves with 10.

Tyneside continue to set the pace at the top of the Womens Division and they chalked up a comfortable 101-25 win at home to University of Teesside.

Vicky Kitchen started well for University, but when Deirdre Hayes took the lead in a run of 17 points without reply in the last four minutes of the opening quarter the writing was on the wall for the visitors who trailed 29-7. Half-time passed at 51-13 and any lingering hopes which University may have harboured were blown out of the water when Zoe Vickers hit nine baskets in a row on the restart.

East Durham and Houghall Academy romped to a 71-40 win against Durham Knights thanks to a 40-16 first half.

Ruth Cass and Laura Calder gave them the perfect start and 15-5 cushion after ten minutes. Anna Cass then joined Calder in a 16-3 start to the second period and with seventeen minutes of the game gone Academy were in charge at 31-8. Knights were much more competitive in the second half as Tamara Davies hit form and Academy relaxed on defence.

Nunthorpe Boro Bruins travelled back down the A19 as 97-76 winners of their contest with Newcastle College Wildcats a Rye Hill.

The first half was even as Sally McLure battled it out for College with Sarah Hindmarch for Nunthorpe and honours were almost even at 48-40 to the visitors at the interval. The second half belonged to Nunthorpe in general and Hindmarch in particular as a barrage of three-point baskets from her helped the Middlesbrough side through to the thirty minute mark with a 70-58 cushion, a lead which had stretched to 21 points by the close.

Just as in the Strollers match, so experience gave Sunderland Nissan the spoils in a 56-39 success against Tyne and Wear Juniors at the Washington factory.

The Tyne and Wear youngsters did manage to hold their own for much of the contest against the much bigger and stronger Sunderland side, but in the end it was 34 points from Judith English which guided Sunderland through a 25-14 first half and a 31-25 second to net the home side their win.

Lauren Young did manage double figures for Tyne and Wear Juniors with ten points.

Nunthorpe Boro Bruins had a busy week and managed to fit in a 91-54 triumph at Maiden Castle against the equally busy Durham Knights.

Ten points in a row and unanswered from Ruth Barron in the middle of the opening quarter gave Nunthorpe a 12-5 lead which Knights cut back to 13-12 as the period closed. Slowly but surely Nunthorpe upped the pressure in the second and third periods and their advantage was 39-27 at half way and 61-47 by three-quarters. Knights ran out of steam in the last quarter and Nunthorpe charged home on the back of a 30-7 ten minutes.

Barron with 36 and Hindmarch with 25 were the Nunthorpe Boro Bruins match-winners. Kat Abrashkina finished with 32 points for Durham Knights to which Tamara Davies added 12.

Division One: Hartlepool HQ Engineering Hornets 79 Nissan 104; Willington Wasps 87 Belmont Reds 67.

Division Two: East Durham and Houghall College A 138 Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics A 46; Specsavers Wear Valley Wolves 56 Shildon Strollers 69; Durham Saints 79 Middlesbrough College Academy B 85; Consett Steelers 84 Hartlepool Hawks ND 64.

Division Three: Specsavers Wear Valley Warriors 60 Specsavers Wear Valley Wizards 33; Teesside Huskies 54 Durham Knights 62; Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics B 48 Belmont 88.

Division Three Cup: Belmont 95 East Durham and Houghall College B 54; Specsavers Wear Valley Warriors 48 Teesside Huskies 47.

Womens Division: Tyneside 101 University of Teesside 25; Newcastle College Wildcats 76 Nunthorpe Boro Bruins 97; East Durham and Houghall Academy 71 Durham Knights 40; Nissan Sunderland 56 Tyne and Wear Juniors 39; Durham Knights 54 Nunthorpe Boro Bruins 91