Basketball News

Nissan have been without a game for a number of weeks, they are still in the middle of their injury crisis and were able to field only five players. Despite all of that it was Nissan who made the better start, catching Academy cold to take a 21-9 lead after only eight minutes as Neil Thorne and Arran Hope were straight into their stride. A time-out and some strong words from coach Paul Douglas restored the students composure and the last two minutes of the first quarter scored 12-2 to Academy and took them into the first break just down at 23-21.

The second quarter was even. Chris Bunten and Kehinde Roberts combined well to keep the Academy side of the scoreboard ticking over and when the half-time buzzer sounded they had eased ahead at 37-35. The pace of the game began to tell on the Nissan five in the third quarter. This time Kieron Achara featured for Academy and with ten minutes left the Middlesbrough side had stretched the gap to 66-53. The final quarter was one-way traffic. At one end of court Nissan ran out of gas to hit only ten points, whilst at the other end everyone contributed as Academy drove away with the spoils.

Everyone scored for Middlesbrough College Academy, although four players did manage double figures; Bunten (14), Duncan Mackie (12), Roberts (11) and Achara (10). Hope and Thorne did best for Nissan with 20 and 19 points each.

East Durham and Houghall College A made it two wins from two League Cup games albeit with a nail-biting 97-95 victory at home to Norton A College had the better of the first half as Darren Spence, Phil Thomas and Graham Hunter notched an excellent 55 points. Steve Butler was the main threat for Norton and he started the second half on fire hitting 12 points in a 15-4 burst which gave Norton the advantage at 61-59 by the fifth minute. With four minutes left College were coasting at 94-85 when six points without reply cut the deficit to 94-91 and suddenly it was game on again. A Spence three-point basket stretched the College lead to 97-91, but it was touch and go as Liam Donohue and Butler hit baskets for Norton and the gap was down to just one basket as the final whistle blew.

Thomas top scored for East Durham College A with 28 points, Spence and Hunter collected 23 and 20 respectively. Despite the individual attention Butler still managed to score 50 points for Norton A, Donohue gave him good support with 22.

There was a shock in store for second division Durham Knights in their Mens County Cup tie with third division Hartlepool Hawks. The game was being played early because of the early finish to the University term and although Hawks travelled with only five players it did not stop them from producing a superb performance and a great 84-64 success.

Brothers Luke and Leon Thompson were at the heart of Hawks victory and they shared the opening 12 points to give the Hartlepudlians a 12-1 cushion after only four minutes. Mat Webb and Harit Intakanok led a Knights recovery and the gap was down to 41-37 before a Luke Thompson three-pointer on the half-time buzzer took Hawks into the break with a 44-37 lead. Sean Ward and Dan Dixon got in on the act on the restart and with eight minutes left Hawks had flown into match-winning 69-50 advantage.

Those four players shared all but four of the Hartlepool Hawks points; Luke Thompson (26), Leon Thompson (24), Ward (16) and Dixon (14). Webb did all he could in Durham Knights cause with 25 points, Richard Barber and Intakanok tried their best with 16 and 14 points each.

Durham Knights really are having a bad time of it at the moment and they also lost a league game, 108-72 to Trimdon Community College Association.

The first half was relatively even as Fred Bjelland and James Hedge did well for Knights, but it was Trimdon who passed the ten minute mark 28-20 up and had stretched the lead to 44-31 by the interval. Trimdon ran away with the game in the third quarter. Ian Harrison and Wayne Oliver switched to the front of the home zone and rebound and fast-break was Knights undoing. When the ten minutes ended Trimdon were out of sight at 80-46.

Harrison was in his element on the break and finished with 36 points, Oliver and Chris Elliott added 22 and 19 for Trimdon CCA. Bjelland and Hedge finished with 18 and 14 for Durham Knights.

An under-strength Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics A were no match for Hartlepool Hornets who won their derby 108-59 and maintain their unbeaten record at the top of the second division.

Things started well enough for Hydraulics as Paul Judkins and Colin Knight matched all that Hornets did and with thirteen minutes gone the sides were level at 23-23. Hydraulics then seized up and failed to score in the next seven minutes. At the other end of court John Middleton and John McBean were having a field day and when the half-time buzzer sounded Hornets were clear at 39-23. Graham Ord, Sean Ward and then Bruce Marshall each took it in turns to pour glue into the Hydraulics works in the first 11 minutes of the second half to take control at 87-38.

Everyone scored for Hartlepool Hornets, although five players did net double figures; Ord (24), Ward (14), McBean (14), Neil Harrison (13) and Dave Furlonger (12). Robinson and Judkins did best for Hydraulics A with 19 and 15 points.

The closest finish of the week gave Durham outfit Belmont A a 64-62 win at Peterlee against East Durham and Houghall College B, and as the score suggests the match could have gone either way.

Tom Wood and Jamie Paul both had good spells in the second quarter and College had taken a narrow lead at 30-26 as it ended. Belmont won the game in the opening eight minutes of the second half. Gary Simpson and Andrew Knox did the damage as a 14-5 spell put them 40-33 up. The final quarter was tension personified. Wood and Andrew Bains combined to cut the gap to 56-54 with four minutes left, but try as they might College could just not find the crucial score they needed.

Lee Davie was the Belmont match winner with 27 points, Steven Graham, Knox and Simpson added 12, 11 and 1 respectively. Wood hit 21 points for East Durham College B.

Old Houghtonians cruised to a 70-47 triumph at home against Peterlee Video.

Houghtonians outscored their guests by two baskets to one throughout the first half. Simon Lloyd landed a trio of three point baskets and Ben Scorer found space in a poor Peterlee zone to take the Houghton side through the first ten minutes 23-11 up. The second period was more of the same as this time Philip Smailes and Simon Wood led the way and when the whistle brought the first half to a close Houghtonians were more or less out of sight at 41-24.

Only Sean Percival threatened the home basket with any regularity for Peterlee and he did have the satisfaction of finishing as the games highest scorers with 31 of the Peterlee total of 47 points. Lloyd was well worth his 26 points for Old Houghtonians.

Consett Steelers had to fight hard for their 81-73 win at Shildon Strollers.

A trio of three-point baskets from Garry Gowans helped Steelers to recover from a 19-10 first quarter deficit and take the lead by half-time at 35-31. Matthew Patterson was then at the heart of a 15-2 Steelers 'purple-patch' in the middle of the third quarter and from being close at 39-38, Strollers were sinking at 54-40. That basically was that as Steelers were always able to counter any Strollers threat.

Patterson once again top-scored for Consett Steelers with 31 points, best for Shildon Strollers were Craig Lowe and Mal Ballard on 23 and 17 each.

Tyneside maintained their unbeaten record, seven wins from seven womens league outings, with a 82-50 success at home to University of Teesside.

Tyneside were 20-4 up by the end of the seventh minute and there was no realistic way in which the visitors could recover that ground. The students did get into the game in the second quarter and the gap was only 38-24 to Tyneside at the break. The league champions did charge away again during the second half with a 25-6 phase spread over six minutes separated by the third break.

Taacha Brown and Vicky McMurray were at their best for Tyneside and they collected 25 points apiece. Helle Harby-Owrenn led the University students with 12 points, Gillian McKimm and Erica Danis collected ten apiece.

Division One League Cup: East Durham and Houghall College A 97 Norton A 95; Nissan 63 Middlesbrough College Academy 81.

Mens County Cup (round two): Durham Knights 64 Hartlepool Hawks 84.

Division Two: East Durham and Houghall College B 62 Belmont A 64; Shildon Strollers 73 Consett Steelers 81; Trimdon Community College Association 108 Durham Knights 72; Old Houghtonians 70 Peterlee Video 47; Hartlepool Hornets 108 Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics A 59.

Division Three League Cup: Belmont B 63 Young Houghtonians 100; Hartlepool CJ Hydraulics B 66 Durham Saints 83; Specsavers Wear Valley Wolves 74 Norton B 58.

Womens Division: Northumbria 45 East Durham and Houghall Academy 52; Tyneside 82 University of Teesside 50; Durham Knights 64 Whickham 36.