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Cadets Vs Solent Stars II – 08-10-2005
Dorset Storm (16, 18, 23, 18) 75 Solent Stars II (16, 19, 25, 18) 78
The first of a four match weekend for Storms National League teams saw the Cadet Boys take on Solent II. Captain Michael Livesey remained from last years Cadet squad, with the rest of the squad being made up of last years Under 15s team. They were also joined over the summer by athletic forward Lucas Marlow and sharp shooter Chris Baker who both signed on but with out centre Michael Roffe. Lead coach Peter Livesey was looking for his players to make quality decisions at both ends of the court.
Storm opened up brightly with Marlow scoring inside and drawing early fouls on the Solent defence. Solent hit back though as the lead continued to change throughout the first quarter with no fewer than nine lead changes. Neither team controlled the boards particularly well, which did mean the game was physical and scrappy throughout the quarter.
Storm again scored first, as Sam Redfearn stole the ball and fed Livesey for the easy lay-up. But in the battle of the captains, Solent had an answer in Woods as the gamed was once again tied at 18. Both teams exchanged baskets, and a lack of defensive rebounding by either side allowed the game to remain high scoring. At the end of a topsy-turvy first half Solent held the edge by a slender point.
Storm started the third quarter much the stronger side, and by the fourth minute had ended up with a three point lead 40 – 37. Solent coach Vicky Calver called a time out, and once play resumed her players came out much stronger and more organized. Managing to put together two runs of seven points and later five points without reply. To the home team’s credit, they managed to continue to put the ball through the hoop as Solent closed out the quarter with a three point lead.
The final quarter opened with a score from Solent, as they extend their lead to five, and it was to be a lead that they would never relinquish. Mid way through the quarter a put back by Marlow closed the gap back to one, before Storm went five shots without scoring. Again Solent had an answer although Sam Grant managed to make his height and size pay against the smaller Solent guards as he poured in six points in a two minute spell towards the end of the match. Unfortunately, Storm failed to score in the final 90 seconds and as Solent scored a basket this meant that a three point shot from the final possession was needed to send the game into OT. However, Storm could not get a shot off as Solent closed out the last few seconds with a solid defensive possession.
It was a good start to the season for Storm, who had a number of pleasing performances from inexperienced players. In review though, no team could make a large enough run to close out the game, with the biggest lead of five points occurring only twice in the entire game - both times for Solent.
For Storm though, a thought for the players is the fact that they conceded three technical fouls which resulted in six foul shots for Solent. Of the six foul shots Solent converted four of these and the margin of defeat was just three. Lack of discipline in any match at this level can mean the difference between a win and a loss, and perhaps the fact the all three technical fouls were for stupid things including touching the ball after a basket after several clear warnings could be the most disappointing part of the game.
Michael Livesey led all scorers with 16 points and five rebounds, but debutant Lucas Marlow supported him with a haul of 11 points and 12 rebounds. Good contributions occurred as five players made double figures.
Scorers: *Livesey 16, Grant 15, *Baker 13, *Marlow 11, *Power 10, *Redfearn 4, Robinson 4, Adamson 2, Nicholson, Hayward DNP, Crotty DNP.
Junior Men Vs Bristol Academy – 08-10-2005
Dorset Storm (8, 16, 16, 28) 68 Bristol Academy (17, 10, 16, 21) 64
This was the opening game of the season for a completely new look Junior Men’s team. Just three players remained from the previous year; with the graduating players from last years Cadet team completing the roster. Dominant centre Alistair Oloo, now playing at Manchester and guards Aaron Devine, Matthew Holmes and Stephen Pritchard along with forward Jake Ketteridge all not returning for a variety of reasons meant that a huge team effort will be needed to be competitive this season. Bristol themselves introduced several new players to the game who were not registered in time for their game the week before against UWIC.
Storm opened the scoring through Louis Gibson and Luke Miller added the first triple of the game to give Storm an early five points to two advantage. Bristol responded well as Storm went on a scoring drought, failing to put the ball in the hoop for over four minutes as Bristol opened up a five point lead. After a timeout Storm came out with a little more composure as Michael Brake got to the foul line and converted one of two and Adam Cran scored inside off a dish in the lane by Brake. Bristol though kept running and fighting, and scored the final seven points of the quarter including a last second three by Bennett. This meant that Storm had a deficit of nine points to make up if they wanted to win the game.
The second quarter did not exactly start well for Storm as Campbell rattled in two threes before Laurence Yeats converted a turnaround jump shot along the baseline, taking the scores to 12 – 25 in Bristol’s favour. Storm then managed to be aggressive against Bristol’s zone defence as they got to the line 10 times in a three minute spell. Unfortunately full advantage of this was not taken as only six shots were converted allowing Bristol to close out the half with a three point advantage, 24 – 27.
The third quarter saw Storm start brightly once again but Bennett again found his way through and converted some tough shots under pressure for Bristol. By the seventh minute Storm found themselves facing their biggest deficit of the game as they were down by 10 points in what was a low scoring match. A timeout called by Storm again halted the Bristol onslaught as first Steven Livesey and then Cran managed to convert plays that reduced the deficit. A triple by Storms only debutant Dominic Stuart reduced the gap further as the quarter ended.
With Storm still trailing heading into the fourth quarter something special was going to be needed if they were going to come out on top. Early on though things didn’t happen for the home team as for the first seven minutes the teams traded a total of 10 baskets, scoring five each. A timeout with just over two and a half minutes remaining appeared to be in vain as Bristol still held a seven point lead which Storm could not seem to cut into. Coming out of the timeout a steal by captain Livesey resulted in a breakaway lay-up for the so far quiet Cran. Another score from Bristol was followed by Cran putting in a shot from the wing that cut the deficit to just five once again. Gibson then stripped Bristol’s centre in the post, and managed to keep control of the ball to set up Miller for a lay up on the break. Storm then gave away a wide open three point shot, the eighth of the game for Bristol, meaning their lead jumped back up to four points. A better offensive play, allowed Cran to convert down low as Storm applied the pressure to Bristol who threw the ball straight back to Cran who found Miller on the break once again. He converted the lay-up but not the “and one” opportunity. Storm then managed to force Bristol into taking a heavily contested shot on their next possession. Good execution offensively found Cran in space as he was fouled and put on the line. Bristol then aided Storms cause as a technical was awarded gifting Storm two bonus foul shots. Two of the four were converted but by this time there were less than 10 ticks of the clock remaining and all Storm had to do was inbound the ball. They managed to do this and, as Bristol trapped to get the steal Brake was wide open under the hoop and he converted as the horn sounded, to give Storm a four point victory.
Credit must be given to the home side as Storm stuck with their task, and their execution offensively was surprisingly sound considering the score, with plenty of open looks being created. Most players on the Dorset team managed to give the ring a good test, as shots rattled round and more often than not back out. In the first three quarters Storm scored only 11 field goals out of 58 attempted, including just three in the opening quarter. Storm definitely played their get out of jail card here but the offensive execution was sound and confidence can be taken from the numerous open looks that were created. Defensively there was a solid performance from the team, with captain Steven Livesey pulling down 11 rebounds and completing six steals. Adam Cran scored 14 points in the final quarter as he ended up leading Storm with 22 points. Louis Gibson also contributed 12 points and eight boards and Michael Brake also scored in double figures with 11.
Scorers: *Cran 22, *Gibson 12, Brake 11, *Miller 9, *Livesey 5, Stuart 5, Morgan 2, Yeats 2, *Tite, Hilton DNP.
Under 15 Boys Vs UWIC and Rhondda Rebels – 09-10-2005
Dorset Storm (17, 18, 17, 20) 72 UWIC (6,6,9,10) 31
The first tournament of the season turned into a little but of a farce as neither team could raise a team due to licence problems. However, UWIC did want to play a game so they made up numbers with players from their other teams to play a friendly match. So with 10 of the 12 players making their debut for Storm along with their coach Andrew McKenzie it was a good opportunity for the players to get a competitive run out and some experience under their belt.
Storm opened the scoring through Jamie Lines, although UWIC had a response down low to tie the score at two. Lines then stole the ball, and drew a foul from the UWIC defence as he drove in strongly for a lay-up. He converted the foul shot for a 5 – 2 lead for Storm. It also gave Storm a lead that they never surrendered the advantage again. James Hilton and Guy Taylor continued to tick the score over as the home team extended to an 11 point lead at the end of the quarter.
The second quarter saw Storm hit a cold patch as they failed to score from 14 shots in the opening four and a half minutes. Allowing UWIC to close the gap and get themselves back onto the game. A steal midway through the quarter by David Reynolds who found Reece Barker streaking down the court for a lay up proved to be the catalyst for a huge run which saw Storm score 16 points without reply to close out the final 5 minutes of the quarter. Defence was the key throughout this run as steals by Lewis Warner and Martyn Williams coupled with strong rebounding from Taylor allowed easy baskets. It was Hilton that was on the end of the majority of Storms good ball movement as he scored 10 points in the last three minutes of the half.
The third quarter saw Storm maintain the high tempo that they had set in the first half with hard work and good communication defensively igniting their offence. Lines again started brightly, getting to the line, grabbing two rebounds and blocking a shot in the early exchanges of the second half. Jonathon Baker grew in confidence as the quarter went on along with Williams as both players scored their first points. Storm continued to dominate the boards which allowed them to extend their lead further.
The fourth quarter saw Storm continue their pressure defensively. Lines scored a brace of baskets and Lewis Warner scored a tough left handed lay up under pressure early on. It was Baker however that provided the consistency as he attacked the hoop strongly and finished well with both hands throughout the quarter. Bradley Kirby kept up the good work on the boards, and Reynolds continued his excellent defensive game as he again came up stripping the ball off the UWIC players several times.
Storm eventually ran out winners 72 – 31. It was a fantastic team effort that led to the win with seven players grabbing five or more rebounds and eight players having at least two steals to their name. James Hilton led all scorers, but the emergence of the young Jonathon Baker with 16 points and four rebounds was perhaps the best performance. Guard David Reynolds had a solid defensive game and was strong at both ends of the court ending up with five rebounds, five steals and two assists and taking good care of the ball, controlling the game without any turnovers.
The only area of concern was the number of times that Storm turned the ball over, 29 times against a more experienced team will most likely be punished more and is something that coach McKenzie will be looking to address ahead of the next set of games. But with four players playing up and more young players waiting in the wings for their chance the future looks bright. They have set the bar high, and to maintain that standard hard work and continued attention to detail will need to be sustained.
Scorers: *Hilton 26, Baker 16, *Lines 10, Thomson 6, *Reynolds 4, Barker 4, *Taylor 2, Warner 2, Williams 2, *Clarke, Duffy, Kirby.
Cadets Vs Solent Stars II – 15-10-2005
Dorset Storm (7, 22, 23, 32) 84 Reading Rockets II (16, 13, 24, 21) 74
Strom Cadets welcomed Reading Rockets to Rossmore Leisure Centre as they looked to bounce back from a disappointing defeat the previous week to Solent Stars II. Michael Roffe was available to make his debut while Niall Adamson and James Crotty were not available for selection.
The game started slowly as neither team could find a basket in the opening couple of minutes until eventually Reading got a score inside. Storm responded as first Chris Baker got to the foul line and then Lucas Marlow slotted home for an early 3 – 2 lead. That was the start of the rot for Storm as they failed to score another field goal in the opening quarter as Sam Grant, Michael Livesey, Baker and Marlow squandered numerous easy chances missing 16 shots between them as the quarter closed out. Fortunately for them though, Readings defence was judged to be overzealous and Storm found themselves at the line, although they had problems here as they only managed to convert half of their ten attempts.
The second quarter started brightly for Storm as Oliver Robinson converted an easy chance and the home side just generally looked more aggressive defensively. But the spark that allowed them to come back into the game was much later in the quarter when Roffe was handed his debut. First time down the court he grabbed an offensive rebound and was unlucky with the put back as it rimmed out. He then also helped break the press as everybody deserted the play as Reading pressed. Following on from that play he grabbed another offensive board and opted for the shovel pass to Robinson for an easy score. Reading had an answer as they responded with two points of their own via their captain. Roffe again proved himself on the offensive boards as he grabbed another and this time supplied Grant for another easy score as Storm managed to tie the game as they went on to score nine points without reply. This brought the scores back level as the teams entered half time with the score 39 – 39.
Strom started the third brightly, but their momentum was quickly dispersed as Reading came back into the game following a timeout by their coach Matt Johnson. A couple of steals by Livesey and then good passes saw Grant and then Robinson convert lay-ups to allow Storm to stay in touch. Defensively though Storm struggled to contain their opponents as Reading went to the foul line a total of 13 times in the quarter. But a poor success rate saw them convert just six of those attempts. After a further close quarter Reading held a slender advantage, by only a point.
The final quarter saw few changes early on as by the conclusion of the forth minute the teams were still looked together at 60 – 60. Again sparked by two steals from Livesey Storm converted on the break, firstly via Robinson and secondly Livesey himself completed the play and with a brace of free throws from Marlow, which also saw the first of Readings players fouled out, Storm took a seven point lead. A further foul by Reading saw Baker split his foul shots and another Reading player heading for the bench. A minute later a score by Livesey gave Storm a 10 point lead which they would have no problem hanging on to.
When reflecting, perhaps the final score lined flattened the home team - the game was close throughout and the key fouling out of three of Reading’s dominant players aided Storms last quarter charge. There was no doubt however on the best performer for Storm as captain Michael Livesey stood out for Storm with seven rebounds, six steals, six assists and 13 points. Oliver Robinson was the other top performer with 19 points and seven rebounds, and Michael Roffe’s debut contribution should not be forgotten either. One area of concern however is Storms lack of care with the basketball and their 32 turnovers will need to be amended quickly. Storm have a weekend off before they travel to Solent Stars I, where they will be looking for their second win of the season.
Scorers: *Marlow 21, Robinson 19, *Grant 14, *Livesey 13, *Power 11, *Baker 4, Redfearn 2, Nicholson, Hayward, Roffe.
Storm Cadets v Solent Stars I – 29-10/2005
Solent Stars I (10, 21, 18, 28) 77 Dorset Storm (12, 6, 13, 9) 40
Storm Cadets came into this away game against a highly rated Solent team with the specific objectives in mind of maintaining their high scoring rate in the previous two matches, improving all round defensive play and reducing their high turnover rate.
A first five of Michael Livesey, Lucas Marlow, Sam Grant, Sam Redfearn and Oli Robinson made an excellent start to the game keeping Solent at bay with intelligent tight defensive play until Solent eventually scored in the seventh minute of the first quarter. At this point Storm were 4-0 ahead through Marlow and Grant with both teams finding it difficult to convert rare scoring opportunities. Storm then brought on Chris Baker and Charlie Power to seek out further shooting opportunities with Power dropping in a 3-pointer on the left in the seventh minute. However, using their shuffle offensive play, Solent were now beginning to cut more effectively to basket. And with Storm in team foul trouble, Solent converted six out of eight shots from the free throw line. Following a cut to basket on the right Marlow converted a pass from Livesey and with an assist from Baker, Power scored another three point shot on the left to give Storm a 12- 10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
A change of offensive pace from the Solent team lead to an early score in the second quarter as they began to get the ball down court ahead of the Storm defence. Nicholson, Power, Grant and Marlow all created good scoring opportunities for Storm but as with the first quarter neither team were able to convert their chances. Then Sneddon, Baker and the impressive number thirteen Gray converted three mid range jump shots in a row for Solent with Marlow and Redfearn responding for Storm to keep the scores level at 16 -16 after five minutes of play.
Solent were now beginning to convert jump shots on the left from close positions. Whilst at the other end of the court Storm were as determined on offence but tending to rush into taking shots from low percentage positions. Storm had made a great start to the game on defence but now their defensive play lacked concentration and along with careless passes this was allowing Solent to convert easy lay ups and at half time Storm trailed by 31-18 (21-6 for the quarter)
At the start of the second half Solent continued to look for weaknesses by penetrating behind the Storm defence. Loose marking and a lack of communication lead to three scores without reply. There was good interplay between Redfearn and Grant on the right but Storm were having little joy with their usually accurate mid-range shooting efforts. Four attempts on basket went astray before Robinson converted from the left side. Eight minutes into the half number eight, Mann dropped a 3 pointer from the top of the key to give Solent a 21 point lead. At this stage of the match Storm were being hit hard for not picking up their players on defence.
A neat interception by Marlow gave him two easy points on the break and the same player scored a further 5 points in the last four minutes of the quarter as Storm scored 9 points (against Solent’s 6 points) to finish the quarter strongly
The combined offensive plays of shuffle and fast break continued to produce scores for Solent in the final quarter with Oakley scoring twice and then man of the match Gray scored three times in a row. For Storm, Baker, Livesey and Grant all began to drive aggressively to the basket with Livesey and Grant both beating a packed defence to score from the right.
Easily intercepted cross court passes by Storm lead to unchallenged scoring opportunities on the break for Solent of which they took full advantage as they went into a 66-35 point lead. The final minutes of the game allowed equal possession for both teams but Solent were able to restrict Storm to outside shooting attempts whilst they themselves scored freely with mid range and close in shots often following in strongly to convert offensive rebounds.
Full marks for effort from the Storm squad once again but a steep learning curve on the day against a talented and well-drilled Solent team. However, it will be a good measure of how well lessons have been learned when Solent visit Storm for the return fixture in February.
Storm have made a bright start to the season when compared to last season but they will have to work even harder in training to iron out defensive weaknesses and find ways of adapting their attacking play to allow more opportunities for high percentage inside shooting. This is a vital next stage of their planning and preparation if they are to compete with the stronger teams especially the likes of their next opponent’s league leaders Southampton Trailblazers.
Scorers: *Marlow 13, Power 9, *Grant 7, *Robinson 4, *Livesey 4, *Redfearn 2, Nicholson 1, Baker, Hayward, Adamson.
Cadets Vs Southampton Trailblazers – 5-11-2005
Dorset Storm (6, 4, 18, 10) 38 Southampton Trailblazers (13, 20, 24, 18) 75
Storm went into this game looking to improve on their performance of the previous week against Solent 1. Despite aiming to tighten up their defence Storm were put immediately onto the back foot and went 10-0 down within the first three minutes. With the impressive number 5 Darius orchestrating their moves, Trailblazers found Storm guilty of ball watching and were able to get behind their defence, with number 14 Stephens scoring from close range. They pressed hard after each score forcing Storm to turn the ball over several times in their own defensive third of the court. Storm tried to increase their offensive options by patiently running set play moves but superior height advantage lead to mid range shots being blocked out easily. 28-5 to Trailblazers at the end of the first quarter.
At the start of the second quarter, Storm started brightly avoiding the pressure defence of Trailblazers by passing the ball ahead early and scoring in the sixth minute through Baker. Mickey Roffe came into the game and used his height advantage to win several defensive and offensive rebounds. A determined Niall Adamson made good use of passing ahead, cutting for the return into the heart of the Trailblazers defence but was denied close to basket. Then Storm slipped back into old habits of not looking after the ball. Poor concentration when passing gave Trailblazers a bunch of turnovers and a string of easy scores with number 8 Neighbour and number 13 Bailey scoring 16 points without reply from Storm. 49-10 to Trailblazers at half time
Storm came out for the second half determined to improve matters and set themselves the objectives of reducing the disastrous turnover rate of the first half and to force the Trailblazers side into low percentage shooting areas. The change of defensive formation to a 1-3-1 zone worked well with wingmen Robinson and Redfearn working hard to limit outside shooting opportunities. Grant began to restrict dribbling the ball to the final third of the court and as a result made a series of penetrating drives to basket; converting six of eight free throws. Trailblazers were now being forced out of their comfort zone and many outside shots went astray. An excellent quarter for Storm was rounded off with a two pass move to Marlow who converted for three points right on the buzzer (17-17 for the quarter Trailblazers leading 66-27)
With guard Darius back on court for the final quarter Trailblazers were again looking dangerous as he dropped a 3-pointer to show his intentions for the close-out. The same player then went on to score a further 7 points. The whole Storm squad were used in the last ten minutes of the game; useful experience for the players against a team that even at this early stage of the season may be predicted as the likely winners of the league. (22-12 to Trailblazers)
Scorers: *Marlow 13, *Grant 6, *Redfearn 4, Power 3, Baker 3, Nicholson 2, *Livesey 2, Roffe 2, *Robinson 2, Hayward, Crotty.
Juniors Vs Swansea Vikings – 5-11-2005
Dorset Storm (6, 4, 22, 10) 42 Swansea Vikings (13, 20, 24, 18) 75
Storms Junior Men’s team prepared for only their second match of the season, having had five weeks off due to two games having been cancelled. Jamie Lines was absent, and will be missing for the next month or more with a broken wrist. This meant that Storm entered with only nine fit players giving very few options for variability in their approach. Looking back to their opening day win, Storms defensive execution was key, and the ability to create open shots – albeit shots that seemed to rim out – needed to be carried forward into this encounter. The visiting Swansea team coached by former professional player Todd Stone came as a well organised unit and a couple of large trees which would definitely challenge Storms interior defence.
The only change for Storm was the insertion of Arran Morgan into the starting five in place of the absent David Tite. After Swansea won the tip, Louis Gibson stepped into control the ball and finished a strong lay-up under pressure for the opening score of the game. Swansea found a reply to tie the game after Storm threw the ball out of bounds after a miss understanding. After a couple more solid defensive efforts by Storm Swansea scored once more and then the first triple of the match gave the visitors a 9 – 4 lead. Arran Morgan finished strongly inside on the next play, but Swansea again game up with two more baskets as a pretty poor first quarter came to an end.
The second quarter saw the opening couple of minutes go by without a score. The only real action was three contentious calls by the officials that saw two offensive fouls called on Storm, and a seemingly identical incident result in a blocking foul at the other end for the home team. Swansea then ignited with six quick points without reply, and by this time the Storm coaching staff had seen enough and called a halt to proceedings. Storm came out of the time-out with a solid defensive effort and Mike Brake finished in transition to score the first basket of the quarter for the home team. Eight points then came as a response from Swansea as they were the first to any 50/50 ball. In the penultimate minute of the half Louis Gibson scored the second and only basket of the quarter for Storm who trailed dismally 10 – 33.
If there was something that could be taken from Storms first half performance it was the home team’s defensive effort that had limited the visitors to just 33 points, with 10 of those points coming straight off turnovers. Swansea opened the scoring in the second half, but Storm still looked disjointed offensively as they scored just two baskets in the opening four minutes of the half. Gibson and an ‘and 1’ play from Brake provided some resistance but Swansea continued to match anything that Storm produced. Although Storm put 22 points on the board in this quarter they failed to make any significant inroads into the deficit.
Entering the fourth quarter Swansea again started the stronger and a nine point run without reply extended their lead to 34 points. Storms depressing offensive execution continued as Swansea again scored points off turnovers in key places. Storms offence started to look like ‘It I’ll Be Alright on the Night’ - unfortunately for Storm this was the night. A couple of times when Storm did managed to run their offence successfully first Laurence Yeats and secondly Morgan finished plays. Luke Miller scored a couple of consolation baskets in the final minutes but it was Swansea who could enjoy the long trip home.
Storm produced a solid defensive effort and took good control of the boards. Arran Morgan was the one player that deserves a mention as he scored 10 points and pulled down seven rebounds. However a truly horrific offensive performance meant that Storm have a lot of reflecting to do before next weeks trip to UWIC. From running simple BOB plays to running the correct lane and timing cuts correctly all seemed to elude the home team. The scores that resulted when Storm did manage to execute their offence correctly provide all the encouragement that the team needs to make the necessary improvements over the next week. But perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the loss was the attitude that some of the players displayed; a change of mind-set and some increased leadership will need to be shown from some of the team’s senior players. The issue now is not this performance, but the way in which the team responds next week, which is how the quality of the team will be measured.
Scorers: *Morgan 10, Brake 7, *Gibson 6, *Miller 6, *Cran 6, *Livesey 3, Yeats 2, Tite 2, Stuart, Hilton.
Cadets Vs Abingdon – 12-11-2005
Dorset Storm (14, 15, 10, 15) 54 Abingdon Eagles (17, 13, 18, 20) 68
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Livesey 16, *Marlow 11, *Grant 10, Roffe 6, *Power 5, Hayward 2, *Robinson, Adamson.
Juniors Vs UWIC Stealers – 12-11-2005
Dorset Storm (6, 20, 17, 13) 56 UWIC Stealers (32, 15, 19, 20) 86
Dorset Storms Junior Men headed over the Severn for the first of three trips to the ‘Big Country’ this season. Their opponents were UWIC Stealers and the venue the rather cold NIAC! Storm travelled with only eight players, leaving behind the U15s members that make up the squad as they had an away match the following day, and David Tite being AWOL. The UWIC had the same familiar faces as last year as well as members of the now defunct Cardiff Clippers youth squads.
Storm chose to start with guards Louis Gibson, Luke Miller and inform Arran Morgan while Michael Brake was given his first start of the season along side captain Steven Livesey in the front court. Storm won the tip, but proceeded to miss two lay-ups in the opening minute while UWIC scrapped for their first points of the contest through a series of offensive rebounds. A turnover by Storm then allowed Lewis to race to the basket where he converted and was fouled by the chasing Brake. UWIC again managed to put the ball in the hoop, but Brake responded for Storm with the opening triple of the game. After opening the scoring however, Storm failed to get another Stop as UWIC scored two quick baskets. By this time Storm’s coaching staff had seen enough and called a halt to proceedings. Following the time out Storm came out with even less focus and turned the ball over four times, twice throwing it straight out of bounds. The message of keep it simple seemed to have been missed as tough shots were taken time and time again with very little ball movement occurring offensively. Even more disappointingly though was the lack of determination at the defensive end, by the end of the quarter UWIC had rattled up 18 points off of Storms turnovers alone. The visitors failed to put in the required effort to get back quickly enough instead choosing to reach in and commit themselves 50 + foot away from the hoop. A 21 point run without reply helped UWIC take a commanding 32 – 6 lead at the end of the quarter, with turnovers and an inept 25% from the foul line not helping their cause one bit.
Storm came out of the quarter break with a little more fire as they managed to put together some decent possessions but had little reward at the end of them. But the most important thing about the opening minutes of the second quarter was the renewed defensive intensity that was evident, as Gibson and Miller both completed steals early in the quarter. It was Gibson that scored the opening two baskets but then back to back turnovers saw the ball come straight back at Storm and UWIC again rammed home the advantage on the break. Later in the quarter Storm started to play some more impressive basketball as first Cran got to the foul line and then Gibson as Storm put a seven nothing run together. After UWIC replied through their captain Arnold, five more points to close out the quarter saw Storm reduce the deficit by five points as they took the second quarter 20 – 15.
Storm opened the second half with 3 turnovers, which gifted UWIC four points with two narrowly being avoided thanks to good defence by Brake. However it was UWIC that managed to extend their advantage as they again put a good run of 14 points together including two triples. Following Storms second timeout of the half, Brake responded completing an ‘and 1’ play. Miller, Cran in transition and then Brake again added points for Storm as coach Leftley had seen enough as Storm went on a 12 point run of their own. UWIC responded well with a tough three pointer dropping from the corner to end Storms run. As the quarter ran out, Cran added four more points in transition, with the help of good passes from Gibson and then Laurence Yeats.
The final quarter would see both teams exchange baskets in the early going. By this time the intensity from the game had all but disappeared as both teams knew the result of the match was never going to be in doubt. Morgan and Yeats however collected some big boards in the final quarter and the ever hustling Brake continued to earn Storm extra chances and win loose balls.
Storm however were left to rue their first quarter performance, 18 points off of turnovers and another six from second or third chances put them on the back foot from the off. Michael Brake answered the call for the senior players to step up and produced his best performance of the year with 13 points, 7 rebounds and numerous contributions both statistically and non-statistically. Arran Morgan again produced a solid performance pulling down a team high nine rebounds, supported by Laurence Yeats who grabbed seven himself. If you remove the first quarter from the equation, you would have a very tight basketball game. If evidence is needed of this team’s ability they just need to look at the performances in all three of their games at different times, to be able to see that they can compete with any team. But for success at National League level the most important element is consistency, and as yet the teamwork that needs to be demonstrated has also been lacking. Next week Taunton visit Rossmore Leisure Centre for the first time in three years, tip-off 3.30pm.
Scorers: Cran 18, *Brake 13, *Livesey 10, *Gibson 6, *Miller 5, Stuart 2, Yeats 1, *Morgan 1.
Passerelle Vs Taunton Tigers – 13-11-2005
Dorset Storm (14, 9, 11, 2) 36 Taunton Tigers (24, 34, 16, 22) 96
Dorset Storms Passerelle team travelled to SCAT, Taunton to play what they thought was going to be their first competitive tournament of the season after the previous cancellations. However, the now seemingly recurring pattern of teams dropping out less than a week before the tournament continued as UWIC informed Taunton that they would not be available to play. So instead of cancelling altogether it was decided that the best route forward was to play a one-off game between Taunton and Storm to get the first actual played match of the season completed! Storm were missing the experienced ball handler Jamie Lines, and Jack Green dropped out at the last minute. Rukan Taki made his NBL debut for Storm (if you count the last match played as an NBL game – otherwise everybody but Guy Tayor was a debutant!).
Stormed opened the game with Reece Barker and David Reynolds in the back court, while Guy Taylor and Peter Thomson paired up in the front court along with Hilton. Taunton opened the scoring through a Clifford 3-point play, but it was Clifford that picked up the foul at the other end of the court as he reached in on Hilton as he had the ball. There was good work by Taylor on the boards throughout the quarter, and it was his offensive rebound and feed to Reynolds for the opening score that got things underway for Storm. Although Taunton responded, Hilton had an answer for Storm, first in an open shot from the right wing, and then with a nice feed to Reynolds who again scored the shot. Taunton continued to make numerous substitutions as almost all of their 12 players had been involved in the first 7 minutes alone. Another good defensive play from Reynolds and Taylor eventually saw Hilton emerge with the steal, he along with Barker were quickly up court and found the trailing Taylor for two more points. However, with around four minutes left Storm hit the self destruct button and a series of turnovers allowed Taunton to rattle up nine quick points, forcing Andrew McKenzie to stop the clock. Following the timeout Storm continued to over dribble in the back court while the hungry Taunton defence pounced on anything - three more turnovers again allowed Taunton to score easy points and take a commanding 10 point lead. Storm were not done yet however as Hilton added a triple from the right, and followed this up with a strong drive and left handed finish, drawing the foul and converting the foul shot. As the quarter ended with a final score from the home side, Storm trailed 14 – 24.
Storm again opened the quarter strongly and a steal by Reynolds allowed him to convert in transition for Storms opening basket of the period. Taunton came back quickly and the experienced Clifford ran the show for the home team in the opening minutes of the second quarter as Taunton stretched their lead even further. Seven consecutive field goal misses by Storm hampered their efforts to put Taunton on the back foot, as the home team continued to come on strongly. Half-way through the quarter though Storm did manage to find their feet again as Reynolds scored in transition this time a nice feed from Bradley Kirby set him on his way, Hilton from outside and Taki from the foul line also scored forced Taunton into taking a timeout as Storm chipped into the Tigers lead. Storm though managed to keep their composure and although Taunton started scoring again, Storm added two more baskets through Taylor as Hilton twice found his team mate open underneath the basket. Although Taunton had extended their lead at the interval, Storm showed good fight and continued to learn and adapt throughout the half.
The third quarter saw both teams exchange baskets early on as first Taki made a good drop step move and Thomson finished well on the break. Taylor again continued his good work on the boards, and Storms guards were learning quickly how to play against the quicker and more athletic Taunton team. Taki joined Taylor fighting for the boards and he added another score for himself and got to the foul line to. Some more good defensive possessions by Storm saw Jonathon Baker slow down the influential Clifford, and Reece Barker hustled well taking the ball away for Storm several times. It was Taki that seemed to be everywhere however as he finished the quarter with five points, four rebounds, two steals, and two blocked shots.
The final quarter saw a rather scrappy period ensue, as both teams tired after three quarters of hard basketball. Although more mistakes were made that lead to some easy points for the home side, Taylor continued to dominate the boards along with help from Taki and Hilton. Kirby and Duffy added some solid defence to the Storm team, both working hard for steals. Unfortunately at the offensive end, nothing would drop for either team in the early going, although Taunton did find their range again later in the period. For Storm though only foul shots for Hilton and Thomson would drop.
Although the score does not look favourable to Storm it is important to remember that Taunton always produces solid, well drilled teams – and this years Passerelle team are no exception. Storm can take heart from the fact that they competed with their opponents throughout the game and there were some pleasing individual performances to go with a good team performance. Guy Taylor controlled the boards pulling down a huge 17 in the match, James Hilton lead Storm with 11 points, but more importantly contributed 10 rebounds and six assists to aid his teams cause. David Reynolds also had a solid game with eight points and four steals although he was hampered by foul trouble throughout, while debutant Rukan Taki produced a fine display ending up with six points, nine rebounds, two steals, two blocks and an assist. Storm now have a couple of weekends off before they should be heading to Cardiff to play both UWIC and Bridport, giving coach McKenzie and his team time to work on things.
Scorers: *Hilton 11, *Reynolds 8, *Taylor 6, Taki 6, *Thomson 5, Baker, Clarke, Duffy, Kirby, Warner, Barker.
Cadets Vs Bristol – 19-11-2005
Dorset Storm (16, 8, 16, 15) 55 Bristol Academy II (18, 16, 8, 9) 51
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Grant 17, *Marlow 16, *Livesey 11, Power 7, Nicholson 2, Baker 2, *Redfearn, Robinson, Adamson, *Roffe.
Juniors Vs Taunton Tigers – 19-11-2005
Dorset Storm (10, 10, 14, 10) 44 Taunton Tigers (22, 24, 29, 28) 103
Storms Junior Men invited the unbeaten Taunton Tigers to Rossmore Leisure Centre to play this Junior Men’s National league match. Storm welcomed back David Tite and James Hilton although they were still without the injured Jamie Lines. Storm were looking to play consistent basketball for the whole forty minutes today, most importantly concentrating throughout.
Storm started with the usual backcourt of Luke Miller and Louis Gibson, while Arran Morgan, Michael Brake and Adam Cran were the front court three. Storm opened up aggressively in the opening couple of minutes, and forced Taunton into early turnovers and although they created several good chances the final shot would not drop. Taunton did eventually open the scoring through their captain Rickwood, although Storms defence was still causing problems for the visiting team. Cran opened the scoring with a tough drive inside, then an offensive rebound provided Taunton a visit to the foul line. A costly turnover following the foul shot then allowed two more on the break and Taunton to take a 10 – 2 lead. Storm continued to have success when the game became a half court contest and corrected their early mistakes now slowing down the Taunton cutters. However for the remainder of the quarter it was a story of poor transition defence from the home team as the visiting team beat Storm down the court time after time for easy uncontested scores.
Storm opened the second period with a score from Miller in the corner. But it was an eight to nothing run with Martin scoring six of those in transition for Taunton, that really opened the game up for the first time. It was Miller again who scored for Storm, and when Laurence Yeats found Brake open for the shot, Taunton called a timeout. The next few minutes saw a period of up and down play as Taunton again put points on the board in transition as Storm seemed to be in a world of their own when it came to defence. Dominic Stuart scored in transition for Storm with a strong finish after he stole the ball at half court, and to finish the quarter Gibson found Cran with a nice pass to end the quarter with a score for the home team.
Storm again opened up the scoring in the third through Brake, Miller was again involved with a good feed. Taunton though stole the ball and got a couple of cheap scores through their full court press. After a couple of minutes though Storm did settle down and managed to negotiate the Taunton press well, unfortunately a series of missed lay-ups resulted in the home team going scoreless for almost four minutes. A timeout in the middle of those four minutes slowed down Taunton’s momentum, but the visitors put together a run of 11 points before Storm scored, again through Brake. Miller also continued his good work and Livesey found him on the break where he scored. Livesey turned provider shortly again as Cran streaked out ahead of the defence and scored another lay-up. Although Storm had started to score points themselves, they switched off defensively, and despite playing some nice offence the score over the last three and a half minutes of the quarter was eight apiece.
Taunton continued with their ego boosting press, to pile on the points in the final stanza. Although they scored less points directly off Storm turnovers, in the early going of the final quarter some bad habits reappeared. Storm committed them selves lazily instead choosing to reach in using their hands as opposed to thinking feet and position first. Early on James Hilton found Cran quickly down court to score two more points and Livesey and Miller also found Cran ahead of the defence later in the quarter too. Despite talking on numerous occasions prior to the match and throughout the match itself, Storm failed to apply enough pressure in the passing lanes or to the ball itself allowing Taunton to locate cutters with easy passes. Some of the team could do worse than to take a leaf out of Hilton’s example as he harassed Taunton’s backcourt into making uncomfortable decisions and fought for several loose balls.
When reflecting, Storm will be able to look at what was a very mixed game for the home team. On a positive note, their defence in the half court was for periods very good. Numerous times Taunton were forced into tough shots, on many occasions with the shot clock about to expire – several times though Taunton collected offensive rebounds which meant another period of hard work was required defensively and more often than not the Taunton team made Storm pay for given up offensive rebounds. Storm will definitely have to continue to work on their transition defence, and need to make sure that they all run back hard enough to have enough numbers back in time. Luke Miller had his best match of the season finishing with 11 points and four assists. Adam Cran scored twelve of his fourteen points on fast breaks, whilst Gibson was again solid with 6 points, 4 boards and 2 assists. The young James Hilton did enough to earn him a place on next week’s trip to Gwent, with an energetic and composed performance. Storm should also look at the fact that over 75% of their scored shots came with an assist – if they needed a clue that ball movement and teamwork is key to their success than that surely provides evidence for this.
Scorers: *Cran 14, *Miller 11, *Gibson 6, *Brake 11, Livesey 2, Stuart 2, Hilton1, Yeats, *Morgan, Tite.
Juniors Vs Gwent – 26-11-2005
Dorset Storm (16, 6, 21, 9) 52 Gwent (22, 28, 27, 25) 102
Storm made their second trip across the Severn in three weeks as they faced another unbeaten team. They had the luxury of taking a full squad with the exception of the injured Jamie Lines who will hopefully make his comeback in the next week for the Under 15s. Luckily Storm had a good trip, and did not suffer the misfortune of several other teams who had to postpone their fixtures due to the freakish British weather.
Storm opened with the same five that started well the previous week against Taunton Tigers. This meant that Luke Miller and Louis Gibson fought off opposition for the back court spots and Arran Morgan, Michael Brake and Adam Cran opened in the three forward positions. Gwent meanwhile opened with a large five, with only Cran equalling the height of Gwent’s shortest player! Gwent opened the scoring, but Brake and Cran both scored baskets with assists on both from Miller. Gwent scored twice inside through Kelly, while Gibson missed two foul shots for Storm – in the opening quarter they would score just two of nine attempts. Storm continued their good work at both ends of the floor, advancing the ball quickly and taking advantage of number advantages with good decision making. The introduction of David Tite saw Storm keep up the good defensive pressure, Laurence Yeats also fought hard under the basket as he entered the game. Following a time-out, Gwent scored seven points in a row, opening up a 12 point lead. Storm stuck to their task however and James Hilton again kept up the defensive pressure on the bigger Gwent players. At the offensive end it was Hilton who also found Brake inside, where he scored the basket and was fouled and scored the foul shot too. Louis Gibson also scored a reverse lay-up as Storm scored six points in the final two minutes of the quarter.
Gwent started quickly although Storm responded. It was four quick turnovers that allowed Gwent to double their lead that forced Storm to call their first time-out of the match. Brake scored after the timeout as Cran drove and dished past the Gwent defence. But a further set of turnovers and some poor shot selection allowed Gwent to again take the initiative and rattle up a further eight points, forcing Storm to use their second timeout in the quarter. Storm re-entered the game with little more composure and although they cut out many silly turnovers it was Gwent that continued to dominate as the home side raced out to a 28 point lead at the half way stage.
Storm were fully aware of their mistakes in the second quarter, and it meant that they had undone the good work that they had completed in the opening quarter. Storm opened up with a series of good defensive plays, with Brake and Gibson grabbing early rebounds to set Storm running offensively. Storm’s interior defence was much tougher in the third quarter and their offensive execution much slicker. Cran started to look much more comfortable and Arran Morgan continued to work hard inside, challenging for any ball that was there and blocking two shots in the quarter also. Storms improved offensive awareness, saw them create more chances offensively and also prevented the athletic Gwent team from scoring on the break.
Storm opened the fourth quarter with a couple of sloppy defensive plays, but Hilton provided a spark first with defensive rebound, and secondly a steal to set Storm off again. Cran first got to the foul line, and then Brake finished with the reverse; while Yeats continued to work hard at the defensive end and also scored a strong play inside half way through the quarter for Storm. Gwent were relentless however, and Storm appeared to be fatigued and this led to some lame passes which were easily picked off by Gwent’s seizing defence. 10 points without reply helped Gwent make the 100 mark, and perhaps made the final quarter split look a bit false.
For the majority of the basketball match, Storm battled and fought hard against the bigger and more skilful opponents. They continued their good defensive work in the half court, but really had no answer in transition as the athletic home side pushed hard. If you take the second quarter and the final two minutes, you see Storm were only trailing here by 18 points which against an unbeaten team is perfectly acceptable. The loss of concentration and focus in the second quarter really hurt the team, and its hard to win when you gift the opposition 18 points off turnovers in one quarter alone. For the remainder of the game though, the visitors kept pace with the home side and can take a lot of positives into the final two games of 2005 against Swindon and Trailblazers. If the team plays well and consistently for 40 minutes there is no reason what so ever why they cannot come out with two wins to finish the year in style.
Adam Cran had his best performance of the year with 23 points and 11 rebounds – but more importantly playing a key role at the defensive end of the court. Louis Gibson ended up with seven points and six rebounds, and Michael Brake scored 16 although he will be a little disappointed with some of his decision making. Laurence Yeats and Arran Morgan worked hard inside, and James Hilton again made an impressive contribution for a young player.
Scorers: *Cran 23, *Brake 16, *Gibson 7, *Morgan 2, Yeats 2, Livesey, Stuart, Hilton, Tite, *Miller.
Cadets Vs Plymouth – 3-12-2005
Dorset Storm (16, 8, 9, 11, 6) 55 (After OT) Plymouth Raiders (21, 12, 9, 12, 9) 58
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Livesey 22, *Marlow 14, *Grant 10, Power 6, *Redfearn 3, Roffe 2, Hayward 2, Baker, *Robinson, Adamson.
Under 15 Boys Vs UWIC and Bridport Evolution – 03-12-2005
An early start from Bournemouth to UWIC in Cardiff on Saturday 3rd December saw the Dorset Storm U15s ready to play against UWIC and Bridport at the National Indoor Athletics Centre at UWIC.
1st Game - UWIC vs. Storm
The first game against UWIC did not begin as intended, a quick start by UWIC, coupled with a poor defensive performance from Storm, saw UWIC take a 13-8 lead at the end of the first quarter with Pulman leading UWIC with 9 quick points playing all positions. Guy Taylor picked up 3 quick fouls and was forced to sit for most of the first half. The second quarter did not begin any better with UWIC getting their biggest lead of the game at 23-13, again lead by Pulman, before James Hilton finished the quarter strongly with a burst of 6 quick points to bring Storm close at 23-19. A defensive change at the start of the 3rd quarter saw Jamie Lines play full court-deny the ball- man to man defence on UWIC captain, Pulman. He had been their top scorer to this point and was frustrating the Storm defence. Jamie’s excellent defence stalled the UWIC attack and allowed Dorset to come storming back. While Jamie was defending, Reece Barkers shot was on fire and he took 11 points in the quarter mostly from mid range jumpers. Storm were back in the game with a runs of 7-0 and 8-0, Storm outscored UWIC 17-6 in the quarter and were back in the lead at 36-29. The 4th quarter was a formality, though low scoring. The game finished with Dorset winning 42-33.
2nd Game - Bridport vs. Storm
A quick turnaround saw Storm with little chance to rest after their first game, but they picked up where they left off in the UWIC game, with some quick steals and good passing against Bridport’s zone defence to begin the game stronger than against UWIC. The first quarter saw Peter Thomson lead Storm to a 14-9 lead. Reece’s mid-range jumper continued to find its mark. The second quarter saw Storm take control of the game with a 12-3 run in the quarter; Storm dominated the Bridport team at both ends of the court. Storm continued its good play, with a strong team performance in the second half, with all players contributing. Tom Duffy’s dive for the ball showed good commitment even though he banged his head on the floor for his troubles and had to be substituted. An 11-5 3rd quarter and a 12-5 4th quarter saw Storm win 49-22.
UWIC (13, 23, 29) 33 Dorset Storm ( 8, 19, 36) 42
Dorset Storm (14, 26, 37) 49 Bridport Evolution (9, 12, 17) 22
Juniors Vs Swindon – 03-12-2005
Dorset Storm (15, 12, 16, 17) 60 Swindon Sonics (33, 23, 25, 27) 108
Storm travelled to the Dorcan Complex, Swindon to take on the Sonics who, over the past few weeks have been on something of a role. Storm however would have fancied their chances against a Swindon side in a match up that generally provides close and tense matches. However with three of the teams most senior players – two of which announced just 48 hours before hand that they were unable to play – meant Storm had a much smaller chance of winning this one.
Changes to the starting line up were again forced, now eight different players have started, in five different combinations so consistency has been hard to achieve. This week Luke Miller – now the only player to start in every game – and David Tite paired up in the back court, with Arran Morgan and Adam Cran joined by centre Laurence Yeats in the front court. Dominic Stuart was joined on the bench by Under 15s player James Hilton and Under 16s captain Michael Livesey, both of whom travelled over 400 miles during the weekend as they played for their respective teams on the Saturday. Storm opened up well, a couple of solid defensive possessions and a foul shot from Cran saw them toke an early lead. Tite crashed the offensive boards hard and he was rewarded with a strong put back for his first score of the season! Although Swindon had a huge height advantage as both of Storms leading rebounds were absent, they failed to take advantage early on and coach North called a timeout for the home side. Storm came out and continued to play good defence, helping out well and forcing the bigger Swindon players to put the ball on the floor more than they would have liked. A couple of lazy possessions at the defensive end later in the quarter saw Mahoney score nine quick points to take Swindon into a lead. Morgan continued to battle inside although he picked up two early fouls which limited his contribution for much of the first half. Livesey scored a triple and long two to close out the quarter for Storm.
Storm started well in the second quarter; but were hurt with a couple of careless passes that lead to easy scores and emphatic dunks on the break for the home side. Storm struggled offensively until mid way through the quarter, when Cran lead a blitz that saw him first find Tite open in transition on the left wing for the long two and then Miller. Morgan and Livesey also benefited from his good passes. All of Storms scores came of assists in this quarter as the ball movement and well timed cuts found big holes in the Swindon defence.
Although by now there was a relatively large gap in the scores, Storm showed a great deal or determination and heart in their second half effort. Miller took a charge, while Tite and Stuart continued to be aggressive on the perimeter. Morgan again picked up a harsh foul, which was his fourth of the game – meaning he had to sit down once again. His replacement, James Hilton provided no let up though as he crashed the boards at the offensive end well and scored a good put back. Laurence Yeats, a little exposed with Morgan in foul trouble looked like an animal as he asserted himself on the boards. Miller chipped in at the offensive end with a couple of field goals and a brace of fouls shots too, while Cran maintained his relentless attack at both ends of the floor.
The fourth quarter loomed and it was now a battle of the mind for the visitors who up until this point had made life hard for the home team, despite the absence of the senior players. They weren’t about to throw it away now either. The visitors battled their way to six offensive rebounds in the final quarter and completed four steals through solid team defence. They continued to give it everything, and regardless of the fact they had been hammered all-day by the strong Swindon team they continued to attack and get to the foul line – making seven of their nine attempts in the quarter. Morgan was inserted back in to the game and battled his way to four points, two steals and numerous rebounds and avoided that fifth foul call from the officials. Yeats took over the point guard position at times and also juggled his way to the basket, scoring on the break. The young pairing of Hilton and Livesey also continued to display good all round games for the visitors. Storm continued to play until the final buzzer at which point, Stuart scored a long two, finishing the game on a high.
Any team that is missing three potential starters is going to find the going tough. But a huge amount of credit must be given to the eight players that made the journey, as they put in a spirited performance that they can be proud of – if an example of how to lose well was ever needed then this is it. Stand in captain Adam Cran, the only under 18s member in the team produced another top performance with 18 points, seven boards and five assists. Luke Miller aided him in the scoring department with 12 of his own. Arran Morgan and Laurence Yeats must also be praised as they both produced big performances inside for Storm. James Hilton again proved he can play up without any problem as he provided a fundamentally sound performance. Michael Livesey, also playing up, showed how it should be done as he scored nine points to go with four assists. There are many positives that the team can take from the game, and despite loosing by 48 points it can be considered one of the most pleasing performances of the season.
Scorers: *Cran 18, *Miller 12, M. Livesey 9, *Morgan 6, *Tite 5, *Yeats 4, Stuart4, Hilton 2
Cadets Vs Torbay – 10-12-2005
Dorset Storm (9, 20, 9, 15) 53 Torbay Tigers (16, 9, 17, 13) 55
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Grant 22, *Marlow 8, *Robinson 6, *Livesey 4, Hayward 4, *Redfearn 3, Roffe 3, Power 2, Adamson 1, Nicholson, Crotty.
Juniors Vs Southampton Trailblazers – 10-12-2005
Dorset Storm (12, 20, 16, 13) 61 Soton Trailblazers (12, 27, 28, 20) 87
Storm were able to field a squad of players that roughly resembled their strongest. Jamie Lines was not chosen as he has only trained once since breaking his wrist, while Michael Livesey joined the team - after playing in the preceding game for the cadets - having impressed in last weeks match against Swindon.
Storm opened up with the same five as the previous week at Swindon, with Luke Miller and David Tite at the guard positions, Adam Cran, Arran Morgan and Laurence Yeats as the forwards. Storm opened up well, forcing Trailblazers to take hurried shots at the end of the shot clock in the opening minute, while at the other end Tite managed to attack the hoop, winning himself a pair of foul shots. Cran also penetrated to the heart of Trailblazers defence scoring a basket. Michael Livesey was introduced in the seventh minute, and he had an immediate affect as he scored, got to the foul line twice, dished out an assist and also completed a steal by the end of the quarter. Trailblazers where still finding it hard to break down Storms defence, as both Miller and Tite placed good pressure on Trailblazers leading scorer Allen, who was held scoreless in the quarter.
Storm started with the same five that finished the quarter, with Michael Livesey being the only change made to the five starters. Again good pressure on the ball, slowed down the visitors offence, while Michael Livesey and Adam Cran put the points on at the other end, aided by an and-1 play from Miller. After the opening 13 minutes, the game was very tight at 15 – 14 to Trailblazers. As Storm started to introduce more players, their defensive intensity seemed to slip away as Trailblazers piled on the points. Storm were just as inept at the offensive end too, where a three minute scoring drought hurt them. Two timeouts called by Storm did little to stem the flow as Trailblazers pushed hard down on the throttle. The re-introduction of Miller and Cran, provided Storm with a solution to the run, as they combined to score 10 points in the closing stages as Storm fought to stay in contention after a 16 – 2 run from the guests.
Storm began the second half with the five players that started. Yeats was the first to score with a good move along the baseline for Storm. Trailblazers responded with Hood in side, but further scores by Miller and Cran forced coach Kelly to call an early timeout for Trailblazers. Tite, Cran and Morgan all added more points for Storm, along with Allen for the visitors to cut the game to just 7 by the half-way stage of the quarter. Steven Livesey scored three points on an and-1 play, following a nice feed from Miller, but again Storms intensity on defence fell. Not only did this allow Trailblazers to score more points, but Storms transition opportunities dried up too. Despite Trailblazers dominating this quarter, their bench still seemed to be unhappy at the officiating and two technical’s in as many minutes gifted the home side some points.
The fourth quarter provided Storm with a big task if they were to win this basketball game. Cran started strongly and Tite and Miller brought the intensity level back up at the defensive end aided by good communication and rotations from team mates. Trailblazers kept the pressure up themselves though, and a time-out halted a mini-run by the Storm side. Michael Brake Steven Livesey and Louis Gibson all scored baskets in the closing stages but in the end Trailblazers ran out comfortable winners.
Storm worked hard in phases throughout the game, and again proved that the side could compete with their opposition. The opening 13 minutes of the first half and periods throughout the second provide evidence of this. Adam Cran again posted a huge double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds, as well as four assists. The good defensive work of David Tite and Luke Miller although not shown by the statistics should not go unnoticed, while the continued hard work of Arran Morgan and Laurence Yeats inside against much bigger opponents was again present. Michael Livesey kept up his good work (probably due to having such a long rest in that first game!) as he scored eight points along with three boards and assists. The Christmas break should provide players with a chance to reflect on several missed opportunities over the last couple of months. Consistency throughout the forty minutes is still the goal that the team is trying to achieve.
Scorers: *Cran 25, M Livesey 8, Brake 8, *Miller 5, S Livesey 5, *Tite 4, *Morgan 2, *Yeats 2 Gibson 2, Stuart, Hilton.
Passerelle Boys Vs Taunton Vs Bridport 18 – 12-2005
Dorset Storm 30 Taunton Tigers 52
Dorset Storm 46 Bridport Evolution 15
Game 1) Storm Vs Taunton
First up for the Under 15s were Taunton Tigers. The last time the two teams met, Taunton had run away winners in the end with their pressure defence breaking Storm down. This time however, there was no such story. After opening up a six point lead in the first quarter, and with the Taunton coaching staff becoming increasingly concerned Storm continued to pile on the points. At one point during the first half the gap was as large as 10 points. The returning Jamie Lines displayed excellent ball control when pressure was put on by Taunton and it was encouraging to see guard Reece Barker being able to penetrate the offensive key at ease.
Slowly in the second half, Taunton clawed their way back and by the end of the third quarter were just two points down. Good defence at the start of the fourth quarter slowed down Taunton’s points scoring, but the real problem was putting points on the board at the other end of the court. At the half was stage of the fourth quarter, they had managed only six points in the half. David Reynolds eventually ended that barren spell with a lay-up off his own steal at the defensive end. However it was not going to be enough as Taunton’s impressive fitness and experience carried them through to a hard fought victory. It was however a unquestionable improvement from the 60 point defeat that Storm had received earlier in the season.
Game 2) Storm Vs Bridport
Storms Under 15s got back to
winning ways after a convincing win over Bridport Evolution. After a poor start
which saw Storm making hard work for themselves they found their form in the
second quarter, ending the first half with a comfortable lead. This was due to
the persistent drives to the basket from David Reynolds. Accurate 3 point
shooting from Jamie Lines and good defence and rebounding by Guy Taylor and Tom
Duffy allowed Storm to extend their lead.
The returning Jamie Lines displayed excellent ball control when pressure was put on by Taunton and it was encouraging to see guard Reece Barker being able to penetrate the offensive key at ease. This young Storm team worked hard today to secure a comfortable win, a special mention for today’s game go to Reece Barker, David Reynolds and Jamie Lines.
Cadets Vs Tamar – 14-01-2006
Dorset Storm (12, 16, 11, 20) 57 Tamar Valley Cannons (21, 12, 21, 23) 77
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Cadets Vs Solent II – 14-01-2006
Dorset Storm (6, 10, 7, 29) 52 Solent Stars II (15, 25, 25, 32) 107
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Juniors Vs Bristol – 20-01-2005
Dorset Storm (13, 9, 21, 12) 55 Bristol Academy (19, 15, 18, 19) 71
Storm made one of their shortest trips of the season to play their first game of the New Year against Bristol Academy. Storm took a full strength team, which has been something if a rarity throughout this season. Last time the two teams meet, Storm had come out on top, winning 68 – 64. The team have had a couple of decent weeks in training and were looking forward to this match to start off the second half of the season off with a bang.
Storm opened up with Luke Miller and David Tite in the back court, and Arran Morgan and Mike Brake joined up front by Adam Cran. The visiting team started well in the opening minutes, Miller and Cran combined to give Storm an early advantage at 7 – 5. Tite then again added to the score, before Bristol scored eight points in 90 seconds, including a three from their huge centre Ravkin, to take a lead. It would be a lead that they would continue to hold at the end of the quarter, despite further scores from Cran and Miller.
The opening period of the second quarter, could be described as “scrappy”, or at least that would be the polite way to put it. Nearly four minutes had passed before a score, Storm eventually opened the account for the stanza. Cran and Brake, with his only score in the game, cut the Bristol lead to just three points. Bristol called a timeout and regained some of their composure, finding a hard worked score to extend their lead out again. Cran put points on the board again for Storm, first converting one of two foul shots and then receiving a good pass from Miller and scoring a wide open lay-up. Despite this, Bristol had an answer for everything that Storm could throw at them. They methodically ran their zone offence when Storm switched from their normal man to man defence and looked unconcerned if Storm applied full court pressure.
Storm knew that they would have to improve on their performance, finishing off the job that they had started and being thorough in everything that they did. Although they started brightly, it was the same story as early on in the match, and by the fourth minute it was still a 12 point ball game. The eighth minute approached, still 12 points. Two good defensive plays, which had been lacking in the earlier stages of the game saw a steal first by Steven Livesey and then by Tite, allowing Storm to close the gap to nine points at the end of the quarter.
Storm opened the final quarter, and managed to slow Bristol down again, and continued to close the gap slowly but surely. By the half way stage of the quarter the gap was seven points – mainly thanks to Laurence Yeats and Livesey who both scored points for Storm. Unfortunately Storm would get no closer as a couple of crucial turnovers allowed Bristol to run in easy scores. This restored their advantage to double figures and Storm never looked like they had the desire to push any harder. Louis Gibson and Cran kept going to the very end however as they scored Storms closing baskets.
Adam Cran was once again the top performer as he collected 26 points and seven boards, although he needs to cut out some lazy plays at the defensive end to perfect his performance. Luke Miller showed his improving ability to handle the basketball at this level as he scored 12 points, but more importantly he dished out a couple of assists while only committing one turnover. Indeed an encouraging aspect was Luke Miller and Louis Gibson hitting outside shots which proves that their confidence is growing with every game. Defensively, David Tite and Steven Livesey both worked solidly and slowed down Bristol’s scoring machines. But, in reality when only two players score more than two baskets, your chances of winning are the same as Sunderland winning the premiership.
Maybe Storms performance was best summed up by an eagled eyed observer who commented on the lack of “passion and energy”. Storm certainly needs more of that if they are going to progress in the second half of the season and finish strongly. Next Sunday sees the Junior Men travel to Gloster Blazers; it’s the first time the teams have ever met with both teams looking to improve upon their current position.
Scorers: *Cran 26, *Miller 12, Livesey 6, Gibson 4, *Morgan 2, *Tite 2, Yeats 2, *Brake 2, Stuart.
Passerelle Boys Vs Rhondda and Bridport – 21-01-2006
An early start from Bournemouth to the Welsh Valleys on Saturday 21st January saw the Dorset Storm U15s ready to play against Rhondda and Bridport.
Rhondda vs. Storm
The first game against Rhondda started poorly for Storm, Rhondda pulled out early to a 6 point lead, a rash of first quarter turnovers saw Rhondda stay in control for most of the quarter but a couple of quick baskets by Taylor and a three-pointer from Lines brought Storm close at the end of the first. In the second quarter, the turnovers continued, lots of travelling calls against both teams saw only 7 points scored in the quarter, 5 for Storm and only 2 for Rhondda. James Hilton scored 3 points in the quarter, to take Storm into the lead at the half, 15-13.
The game improved in the second half and saw a flurry of points from both teams. Peter Thomson got into the game with 6 quick points, but Sarah Lewis and Matthew Lynan from Rhondda kept the game close with 11 points between them. The game continued to be tight into the fourth quarter. Good defence from both teams kept things tense. James Hilton was blocked by Rhondda guard, Sarah Lewis. With the game winding down the score tied, Rhondda got a steal with 1 minute to go and the Rhondda guard drove the length of the court chased by Guy Taylor, as he went up for a lay-up Guy blocked the ball off the backboard to keep the scores level. Reece Barker was fouled with 30 seconds to go and sunk both free throws to guarantee the game for Storm.
Bridport vs. Storm - Thompson on form as Storm go wild.
A quick turnaround saw Storm with little chance to rest after their first game. However, the Rhondda game was not much of a warm up, with Storm and Bridport struggling on offence. The quarter ended with Storm in the lead 6-4. A change in defence in the second quarter saw Storm go to man-to-man defence, and it broke the game open. Storm outscored Bridport 19-10 in the quarter with Peter Thompson rebounding strongly and hitting 11 points.
In a strong team performance in the second half, Dorset continued to play well forcing a number of Bridport turnovers leading to quick Storm points. Jon Baker played well, joining up with Jamie Lines for some give and go baskets, scoring 4 in the third and five in the fourth. A mid range jumper by Lewis Clarke half way through the third quarter saw Storms confidence soar. The fourth quarter was a continuation of the third, with six Storm players scoring in the quarter, so that Bridport could not shut anyone down. A strong finish saw Storm win 65-28.
Cadets Vs Reading II – 21-01-2006
Dorset Storm (19, 9, 19, 14) 61 Reading Rockets II (21, 33, 20, 21) 85
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Juniors Vs Gloster – 29-01-2006
Dorset Storm (13, 17, 12, 16) 58 Gloster Blazers (15, 19, 26, 19) 79
Storms Junior Men were once again on their travels, this time to play Gloster Blazers. The only change in the team was James Hilton returning, having had a successful trip with the Under 15s last weekend, in place of the absent Mike Brake. The teams were yet to meet this season, with the earlier game being postponed due to Gloster’s unavailability. With Captain Steven Livesey celebrating (all be it very quietly) his birthday and having been serenaded by Carla, there was expectation of a birthday present coming his way.
Storm opened up with Luke Miller and David Tite in the backcourt, Arran Morgan and Adam Cran were joined by Laurence Yeats in the front court, who came into the starting five for Mike Brake. Storm once again opened up brightly, as Cran, Yeats and Morgan all scored as Storm opened up an 8 – 3 lead. Gloster slowly clawed their way back into the game though, and as Storm switched off at the end of the quarter Gloster got an uncontested shot at the buzzer which saw them take the lead for the first time in the match. It was a positive start for Storm, although two fouls each on Tite and Yeats meant that they would see limited court time for the remainder of the first half. The only criticism that could be levelled at the team was the five lay-ups that they missed in the quarter.
To start the second quarter, Morgan and Cran both benefited from the good passing of captain Steven Livesey as they helped Storm restore their lead. Gloster though kept coming back, with Hall scoring eight points in the quarter to keep them close. Louis Gibson played some solid defence and converted a strong lay-up on the break while as a team Storm continued to clean up the glass. Unfortunately, all of Storms good work was undone by a lapse in concentration at the end of the quarter, that saw Gloster score eight quick points again scoring on the buzzer.
Storm started the second half with a series of turnovers, but Gibson provided a steady influence as he grabbed some rebounds at the defensive end to limit Gloster’s scoring. Tite and Gibson (who scored six in the quarter) put some points on the board, although Gloster appeared to have regained the initiative. Dominic Stuart came off the bench to score a big triple, and Yeats played solidly at the defensive end. Gloster though, had five different players score four or more points in the quarter and had opened up a gap by the end of the quarter.
With Storms personnel options limited still further, James Hilton sparked a seven nothing run as he put back an offensive rebound for two points. Morgan continued to battle and got two points inside, while Livesey was doing a more than capable job filling in at the guard spot, controlling the ball and finding open team mates for easy scores. Fatigue was clearly beginning to set in and despite being aggressive and attacking the hoop, the players legs were feeling it as Storm converted just 4 of 10 attempt’s from the foul line. As the quarter went on, a few mistakes crept in allowing Gloster to run in some easy scores, and with three minutes to go Cran, who hadn’t had a rest in the second half decided that he needed to take drastic action if he was going to get a sub. Off he went to the changing rooms with a bloody nose having been sandwiched by the Gloster defence! Louis Gibson was still gunning it in though, and the birthday boy Livesey got to the foul line on the last play of the day where he converted one of two shots.
Despite the loss, this was undoubtedly one of the best performances from this team so far. The offensive execution was starting to flow, and the defensive intensity has started to rise. As always the “Castrol” of the team was David Tite who continued to do all the things that go unnoticed, from hustling for every loose ball to setting good screens. Steven Livesey, playing out of position held things together during the second half with his best performance of the season. Adam Cran and Louis Gibson were also outstanding, both recording double doubles of 16 points, 12 rebounds and 13 points, 10 rebounds respectively. Next week, Storm face Swindon Sonics at Rossmore Leisure Centre, tip-off 3.30pm where they will be looking for another improving performance.
Scorers: *Cran 16, Gibson 13, *Miller 7, Livesey 6, *Morgan 5, Stuart 3, *Yeats 2, *Tite 2, Hilton 2.
Cadets Vs Solent I – 04-02-2006
Dorset Storm (8, 13, 4, 10) 39 Solent Stars I (16, 15, 20, 18) 69
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Livesey 12, *Robinson 4, Adamson 4, *Grant 4, *Marlow 4, *Roffe 4, Power 3, James, Nicholson, Hayward, Crotty.
Juniors Vs Swindon – 04-02-2006
Dorset Storm (7, 25, 7, 14) 53 Swindon Sonics (26, 6, 11, 19) 62
Earlier in the season when the two teams met, Swindon ran out comfortable winners. Over the subsequent weeks, they have quietly worked their way up the league table to third position, behind the two runway teams, Gwent and Taunton. The Junior Men have started 2006 well, with a series of improving training sessions and good displays away from home against Bristol and Gloster. Despite losing both of these games the overall performance of the team has been improving week on week, and it was the hope of the coaches, parents and players that this would continue into the month of February.
Storm opened the game with Louis Gibson and David Tite at the guard spots, and Laurence Yeats and Arran Morgan either side of Adam Cran in the front court. They started well, as the opening 90 seconds saw both teams fight hard to score a basket each. Storm then looked tentative and lost, by the physical nature of Swindon both at the offensive end of the court and the defensive end. By the third minute the score line had been stretched and read 14 – 5 to the visitors as only Gibson added to home side score. It didn’t get much better after the time out either as Storm looked poor to say the least. Both young and experienced players made mistakes, as the offence was stagnant and fragmented to say the least with players passing up open shots, even lay-ups in favour of forcing a pass to a team mate. 10 turnovers that led to seven points, and giving up offensive rebounds to the sum of 10 points allowed the visitors to take command of the basketball match. Indeed it was an inadequate performance that saw the home side score just a further two points, some four minutes later to be trailing by 26 points to seven!
After a few home truths, the home team did come out with some more fire and passion. It wasn’t to be though as in the opening four minutes, Swindon had added six further points to their lead whilst the home team had missed their opening five shots. The positive thing though for the home side was the increasing fluency at the offensive end, better cuts and tough screens were present, and the intensity at the defensive end was increasing mainly through the presence of Steven Livesey. It was Livesey that provided Cran with the ball wide open under the hoop in the fourth minute that resulted in the first score of the second quarter for Storm. With the increasing intensity on the defensive end, Swindon found they could no longer bully their way to the basket. Players were diving on loose balls, fighting for rebounds. This improved defensive display, sparked a couple of easy offensive scores for the home side, and by the time the home side had reached 19 points, via a 12 – 0 run (in which Cran had scored 10) Swindon called a timeout. This did little but to provide more confidence to the surging home team, who continued to dominate. With Cran now being shut out of the game, it was going to be a test to see which other players would step up and be counted. In the remaining duration of the quarter Brake, Miller and Livesey all added to the home sides score. What had started out as a catastrophic performance all of a sudden looked rather different. In the closing six minutes of the quarter, the home team had been on a 25 – 0 run!
Storm persevered with the same five that had had much of the success in the second quarter, but early chances went begging as seven missed shots and a couple of unforced turnovers allowed Swindon to open the half scoring seven points, which was halted only by a Storm time-out. Adam Cran then produced a couple of impressive passes, the first of which sent Miller on his way for Storms opening score. Livesey and Cran himself also added to Storms points as a physical battle developed, with both teams struggling to break one another down. Come the end of the quarter the visitors had the advantage, by just 43 points to 39.
Enter the final stanza, with the game now looking wide open and the opening four minutes saw both teams trade baskets. Brake and Cran increased their share of the responsibility as the home side made one final push. Two baskets without reply, the first a baseline jumper by Brake and a second a tough reverse lay-up by Gibson brought Storm close, but unfortunately not close enough. To Swindon’s credit, they ran their sets well in the closing minutes, frustrating Storm who needed to get stops and scores to have any chance.
The main performer for the home side was again Adam Cran, with 17 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. Steven Livesey had his third straight impressive performance while Michael Bake and Luke Miller both had sound performances. It was a good team effort though, with lots of volume from the bench, and will undoubtedly provide a learning curve to many of the teams young players. Basketball is a physical game, you must be able to match or better your opponents in the hustle and work ethic stakes to have a chance of winning any match.
After a hopeless first quarter, at the end of which the emptying of seats was understandable, the home side certainly put in a performance worth shouting about. Storm outscored the visitors 46 to 36 in quarters two, three and four which would have in a normal match have guaranteed them the win, but this was no ordinary match! Having had to expend such a huge amount of energy in the second quarter to get themselves back in the match the issue of fatigue was always going to be a factor. In the end the visitors, who had to do very little work for their opening quarter lead outlasted the Storm team. To come back from 25 points down to tie the scores on several occasions shows the character and spirit of the team, this is something that is seen certainly seen very rarely at any level of basketball. Perhaps if the players went into the game wanting to win and believing in themselves then the slow starts would be a thing of the past. Despite the ups and downs it was a more than encouraging performance, in which the players can take confidence into the remaining part of the season.
Next week Storm have a weekend off as the Swansea game has been cancelled. So their next game is on Saturday 18th February against UWIC. A game that the team will definitely be targeting to get their belated first win of 2006 in!
Scorers: *Cran 17, Miller 12, Brake 9, Livesey 8, *Gibson 5, *Morgan, Stuart, *Yeats, *Tite, Hilton DNP.
Passerelle Boys Vs Taunton Vs Rhondda – 05-02-2006
Dorset Storm 47 Taunton Tigers 85
Dorset Storm 20 Rhondda Rebels 0
Dorset Storm looked to avenge
their defeats earlier in the season to Taunton Tigers. Taunton’s U15 Boy's are
currently on an 8-0 winning streak. Previous games between the two sides had
shown that Dorset still has a lot to learn and many aspects to work on to be
competitive against organised sides.
In the end Taunton came out on top, but there were some really pleasing performances from individuals. The togetherness of the team despite playing what they will regard as a below par game is a great asset and one the team should do all it can to keep.
Scorers: Unknown
Juniors Vs Swansea – 11-02-2006
Dorset Storm 20 Swansea Vikings 0
Swansea forfeited match.
Scorers: N/A
Cadets Vs Southampton – 12-02-2006
Dorset Storm (, , , ) 26 Southampton Trailblazers (, , , ) 94
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Local League Under 14s Match – 12-02-2006
Dorset Storm ‘A’ (8, 12, 12, 15) 47 Dorset Storm ‘B’ (7, 12, 8, 12) 41
In the first inter-club match of the season, Dorset Storms Under 14s A and B teams would match up against each other. A total of 13 players were making their debuts along with the three coaches, undoubtedly if it wasn’t due to illness even more players would have made their first appearance for Storm.
Storm ‘A’ opened up with the first four points of the match through Scott Gubbins inside and Steven Ireson on the perimeter. Following a timeout though, Guy Taylor along with Matthew Lawson replied to give Storm ‘B’ a 7 – 4 lead at the three-quarter stage of the opening quarter. The young Storm ‘B’ side were more than matching Storm ‘A’ with physical play and scrapping for every loose rebound in the early going. As the quarter ended, the introduction of Chris Amhoff and Rhys Barton for the first time in the match for Storm ‘A’ coincided with them regaining the initiative to lead by one at the end of the opening period.
The second quarter started well for the ‘B’ team as Adam Stockley and Jake Williams got to the foul line while Taylor also continued to score. A quick timeout by a concerned looking coach Andrews halted the damage temporarily. Further scores by Williams and Ryan Goddard - who can both be thankful to excellent passes from both guards Lewis Daly and Lawson – converted breakaway lay-ups. Ireson again scored for Storm ‘A’ and Barton also scored helping the ‘A’ team to reduced the gap to just a single point. Stockley restored the lead for the ‘B’ team, but another score from Amhoff gave Storm ‘A’ a rather fortunate lead going into the half time break.
The second half started with Storm ‘B’ again gaining the advantage, with good ball handling and pressure defence taking its toll on the flustered ‘A’ team. Coach Andrews was having his work cut out as he called another timeout to rally his troops. They responded well as Ulas Temel, Alex Lander and Barton scored six points. Storm ‘A’ were looking more comfortable as the game progressed and an excellent put back by Ryan Burton was the only other score for Storm ‘B in the quarter. In the final minute a huge “and one” play from James Smith shooting a jump shot in the corner helped Storm ‘A’ continue their momentum. This all meant that despite some good ball handling by Storm ‘B’s superior guards, the bigger, stronger Storm ‘A’ side had opened up a five point lead at the end of the quarter.
Entering the final stanza, with the game as yet undecided both teams came out firing. Seven baskets in the opening three minutes saw the game all of a sudden become tied as Storm ‘B’ again came fighting back. Taylor and Williams did all the damage as Storm ‘B’ took the lead for the first time in a good while. Coach Andrews again used his timeout wisely and his team responded once more with some stifling defence while Lander, Smith and Amhoff all finished at the offensive end. Meaning that after forty minutes of excellent basketball Storm ‘A’ had nudged out Storm ‘B’ by a score of 47 – 41.
A huge congratulations goes to all the players and coaches that took part in an exciting game of basketball. Storm ‘B’s guards displayed some good ball handling and passing skills while Guy Taylor and Jake Williams scored the bulk of the points thanks to numerous good passes by their team mates. For Storm ‘A’ it was Dean Gray that lead all scores with 10 points, but Rhys Barton and Chris Amhoff had particularly strong all round games. In the end though, Storm ‘A’ had a little to much fire power for Storm ‘B’, but I am sure that the rematch that will take place later in the season will be competed even fiercer.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: Grey 13, Barton 8, *Lander 6, *Amhoff 6, Smith 6, *Ireson 4, Temel 4, *Gubbins 2, *Goddard 2, Green, coached by Steven Andrews.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 19, Williams 10, *Stockley 4, Burton 4, *Law 2, *Lawson 2, Tremain, Daly, Tadman, *Clapcott, coached by Louis Gibson and Luke Miller.
Local League Under 16s Match – 12-02-2006
Dorset Storm ‘A’ (24, 19, 19, 12) 74 Dorset Storm ‘B’ (18, 16, 15, 24) 73
The viability of this match was brought into question earlier in the weekend as many players have been struck down by the virus that has been doing the rounds of the local schools. With the Cadet Boys already shorthanded playing a national league game for similar reasons, there were a lack of replacement players available. In the end though, 13 players (8 debutants) were scraped together and instead of playing ‘A’ versus ‘B’, which was impossible due to the absence of players, the teams were mixed as evenly as possible. For the ease of writing the match report, we will call coach Andrews’ team, Storm ‘A’ and coaches Gibson and Millers team, Storm ‘B’.
It was Storm ‘A’ who started the better, as Peter Thomson dominated the early exchanged on the perimeter, scoring the opening four points. Declan Carter also scored from the perimeter along with a further basket from Thomson forcing Storm ‘B’s coaches to call a timeout to allow their team time to regain their composure. They also used this as an opportunity to bring Guy Taylor into the game; he quickly made his presence felt scoring two inside. David Reynolds got to the foul line on the break and converted the foul shots and Taylor added a further deuce before Pratik Tamang opened his account with a nice move inside. Reynolds made a further three foul shots in the next minute to bring Storm ‘B’ back to within two points. The battle of the boards was by this stage being hard fought, with the ever dominant Taylor working overtime to contain Storm ‘A’s Tamang and Thomson. A couple of weak side offensive rebounds resulted in scores for Storm ‘A’ though, which gave them an eight point lead before Harmony Wong scored the final basket of the quarter to reduce that lead to six points.
Storm ‘A’ regained the momentum early in the second period as five different players scored the opening five baskets of the quarter. Taylor and Reynolds halted the onslaught, but Tamang answered - first with a strong drive and then secondly stepping out on to the perimeter. Reynolds scored again, this time also being fouled on the fast break lay-up and converted the foul shot to reduce the deficit to 16 points. A couple of lazy plays then resulted in Taylor and Wong adding to the ‘B’ teams score while Reece Barker missed two foul shots and Peter Thomson one of two as Storm ‘A’ lost their energy. This allowed Storm ‘B’ to pull the game back into their reach, with some good finishing and ball movement ignited on many occasions by their suffocating defence. At the half, Storm ‘A’ had the advantage still, 43 – 34.
Storm ‘B’ opened the scoring in the second half as CJ Marchese and D Reynolds combined with a nice play for the opening score. Tamang responded for Storm ‘A’ as he got to the foul line, and although he missed the second shot he got his own rebound and scored two more points. Taylor and Reynolds added further points for Storm ‘B’, before a 10 – 0 run in which Thomson scored five points in two minutes saw Storm ‘A’ open up the game for the first time. A well timed timeout limited any further damage. For Storm ‘B’ CJ Marchese, who must have felt like the unluckiest person in the building saw a succession of shots go half way in, and promptly pop back out! Arlen Polluntine and Wong added a further six points for Storm ‘B’ as they made a late surge towards the end of the quarter. At the end of the third period they were still down though, 62 – 47.
The final stanza looked like it would be an uphill battle for Storm ‘B’, who had one player less than Storm ‘A’ and had players in foul trouble. Foul trouble was hampering Storm ‘A’ too, as an offensive foul saw both Barker and then Lewis Clarke too pick up their fourth fouls. Meanwhile, Storm ‘B’ went on a 10 – 2 run, closing the gap to just 11 points, mainly through Reynolds who scored eight in the run. Henry Chang and Polluntine were now helping Taylor dominate the boards and surprisingly it was Storm ‘A’ who looked the more fatigued. Coach Andrews called a timeout, Tamang and Carter then responded, but with three minutes to go, and the gap at seven points, Clarke fouled out sending Reynolds to the line where he made both. Thomson and Tamang responded, but Reynolds again counted with a triple. Next time Storm ‘B’ had the ball, Reynolds was again fouled as he looked to create a shot for himself or a team mate. The bad news continued for Storm ‘A’, as it was Barkers fifth and final foul. Reynolds again converted both foul shots and at the other end Taylor fouled Tamang, he too converted the foul shots. In fact neither team would miss a foul shot as the teams scored 11 out of 11combined in the final quarter. Wong and Polluntine combined to steal the ball at half court, and Reynolds somehow found the trailing Taylor who score two more and was fouled. As was the trend, he scored the foul shot too. Making the scores 74 - 71 with just over a minute to go. A couple of good defensive displays followed, as players struggled to create an open shot, and it was Reynolds who managed to get a steal for Storm ‘B’ and converted the lay-up for two more points, creating a one point ball game! Talyor then fouled out as Storm ‘B’ pressed, looking for the steal. A timeout called by Storm ‘A’ saw them come out and run the clock down with some good ball movement and spacing. By the time Storm ‘B’ managed to stop the clock with a foul the buzzer sounded simultaneously meaning that Storm ‘A’ had secured themselves a one point victory!
There were a number of good performances, with Pratik Tamang scoring 33 on his Storm debut, and Peter Thomson and Guy Taylor netting 22 a piece. All three players did a great job on the glass too. However, the best performance of the day was from David Reynolds who scored a personal best 37 points on a selection of drives, jump shots and three point shots, while handing out numerous assists, collecting more than his fair share of boards for a guard and playing his usual hard nosed defence. Also highly impressive was his foul shooting as he scored 10 of his 12 attempts. Perhaps in the end the team with the extra player outlasted their opponents. The game was competitive and contested hard throughout. Well done to all the players and coaches that took part in what was a thoroughly entertaining match. It could also be considered one of the best ever interclub matches, an absolutely fantastic game.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *Tamang 33, *Thomson 22, *Barker 7, *Carter 6, *Liu 4, Clarke 2, White, coached by Steven Andrews.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Reynolds 37, Taylor22, *Wong 8, *Pollintine 6, *Chang, *Marchese Coached by Louis Gibson and Luke Miller.
Cadets Vs Abingdon – 18-02-2006
Dorset Storm (12, 20, 14, 9) 55 Abingdon Eagles (19, 21, 24, 30) 94
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: *Livesey 20, *Power 13, *Robinson 8, Hilton 8, *Marlow 4, Baker 2, *James, Hayward, Nicholson.
Cadets Vs Bristol – 25-02-2006
Dorset Storm (14, 8, 9, 11) 42 Bristol Academy II (17, 16, 18, 13) 64
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Cadets Vs Plymouth – 04-03-2006
Dorset Storm (14, 16, 25, 17) 72 Plymouth Raiders (9, 13, 13, 20) 55
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Juniors Vs Taunton – 04-03-2006
Dorset Storm (11, 4, 5, 6) 26 Taunton Tigers (26, 32, 26, 37) 121
Dorset Storms Junior Men’s team travelled to Taunton to take on the unbeaten Taunton Tigers. Having had a month off due to cancelled fixtures Storm felt fresh and ready to go. They were without leading scorer Adam Cran, starting forward Arran Morgan was also missing, as well as James Hilton. Jamie Lines made his first appearance since Christmas.
It was Jamie Lines who slotted into the starting line up along with Michael Brake, joined by the three regulars Captain Steven Livesey, Luke Miller and David Tite. Storm started well, frustrating the physically bigger opponents and creating opportunities at the offensive end through some good ball movement. They failed to take advantage of the home teams slow start however and soon found the home team piling on the pressure. Despite not scoring for almost the opening three minutes of the ball game Taunton game back with vengeance add by the half way point in the quarter had amassed a 12 – 2 lead. Storm came out more poised and spread the floor well to beat Taunton’s press, with Laurence Yeats playing particularly well off the bench. Brake and Livesey also ran in easy scores as Storm played well in the remaining minutes of the quarter, but still found themselves trailing 26 – 11.
Storm came out with little energy, enthusiasm or desire in the opening minutes of the second quarter. Taunton easily took advantage of Storms poor passing and lack of anything that resembled hustle at the defensive end. The gap had increased considerably by the end of the quarter, to 58 – 15.
You would have though that at half time the players would want to re-group and put in an effort that displayed their dignity and pride. It was not the case. Storm opened up with seven turnovers in the opening two minutes. Poor passing and communication was to blame.
The fourth quarter continued in much the same vain, Tite and Livesey providing the only sparks in the stanza. Storm gave up 37 points to just six in the final 10 minutes of the match
Storm Junior Men thoroughly disappointed in this encounter. Irrespective of the difference in ability and physical size, the fact that Storm were missing two key players or anything else, it was an abysmal effort. Few players seemed to come out with any pride, strolling back on defence giving up hustle plays and seemingly enjoying the experience of getting thoroughly beaten. It’s hugely disappointing as a coach or a fellow player to feel that your team mates have let you down, and for some of the players and the coaches that is just the feeling that they will have experienced. All that is asked is that you give your best as a player at Storm; it certainly was not the case that every player gave his all on this occasion. Some players should feel rightly embarrassed if they have any pride at-all, having given a half hearted performance.
There were some bright points despite some poor attitude, with Steven Livesey and David Tite being solid and energetic. The young Jamie Lines also did everything that was asked of him and Laurence Yeats had a good game also. Storm play host to Gwent BBC next Saturday at Rossmore LC and regardless of the result the coaching staff will insist that the team shows more endeavour and aspiration than was in display against Taunton.
Scorers: Yeats 5, *Brake 5, *Livesey 4, *Tite 4, *Miller 4, Gibson 4, *Lines, Stuart.
Local League Under 14s Tournament – 05-03-2006
Dorset Storm played host to Whiteley Oaks in a three team tournament for Under 14s. Storm entered two teams, appropriately named Storm ‘A’ and Storm ‘B’ and Whiteley brought the first of their two teams to Rossmore Leisure Centre.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ (8, 5, 7, 7) 27 Whiteley Oaks (20, 31, 36, 16) 103
This was the first competitive match against non-club opposition for many of these players. Captain Jonathon Baker started well, scoring the first eight Storm points, but Whiteley through good intense defence managed to stretch out to an early lead. Alex Lander helped Baker out at the offensive end and Rhys Barton and Chris Amhoff also looked lively. Billy Merrick added his first points of the game at the start of the second half, and Lander also added to his account. Ryan Goddard was getting stuck in on the defensive end making the large Whiteley side fight for everything. In the end though, the bigger and much more experienced Whiteley side ran out winners, but it was a significant learning experience for Storms new players and one that they enjoyed very much. Jonathon Baker was outstanding throughout leading Storm with 18 points and also displaying some tough defence.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 18, *Lander 6, *Merrick 4, *Barton, Amhoff, Ireson, *Temel, Gubbins, Goddard, H. Baker, Grey, coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ (13, 5, 8, 3) 29 Whiteley Oaks (14, 28, 14, 25) 81
The second game of the day saw Whiteley take on Storm ‘B’. The home team opened up an early four point lead, thanks to some good shooting from Adam Stockley and good awareness from Yung Kwok. This forced Whiteley to take an early time-out. Whiteley came back with more intensity but Storm stuck with their task and kept themselves in the game at half time. Whiteley came out strong in the second half but Guy Taylor provided some resistance but the height of the Whiteley attack was causing problem for the vertically challenged Storm team! Storm continued to work really hard at the defensive end and created several break-way lay-up chances in the closing minutes.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 14, Stockley 6, Kwok 5, Williams 2, Daly 2, Burton, Law, Lawson, Tremain, Tadman, Clapcott, Kelly, coached by Jill Jones.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ (8, 17, 13, 12, 9) 59 (after overtime) Dorset Storm ‘B’ (13, 12, 15, 10, 10) 60
Next up it was the interclub match. Last time the game was fought hard and Storm ‘A’ eventually came out on top with a six point victory. Early on the teams exchanged baskets; with Taylor being found wide open under the basket by Kwok for Storm ‘B’ and Lander scoring on the break for Storm ‘A’. Taylor, helped by Burton kept the score ticking over mainly through crashing the offensive boards. Baker and Merrick provided scores for Storm ‘A’ who trailed at the end of the first quarter by five points. Stockley (Storm ‘B’) and Baker (Storm ‘A’) provided further scores for the teams in the second quarter, but is was Storm ‘A’ who had come out the strongest. Ulas Temel finally got on the score sheet, scoring down low consistently throughout the quarter for Storm ‘A’ as they had tied the game at the half time break.
The contest continued to be nip and tuck in the second half. Rhys Barton scored back to back baskets and Chris Amhoff also scored as Storm ‘A’ went on a 8 - 0 run. Matthew Lawson, Stockley and Taylor also scored in quick succession for Storm ‘B’ as the gap was reduced. Entering the final minute of the game, Storm ‘B’ were down by six. Two clutch free-throws by Stockley followed by a turnover by Storm ‘A’ saw the deficit reduced to two. On the next offence a missed shot allowed Storm ‘B’ to have a chance to tie the game. They missed the shot but Taylor was again there on the offensive glass as he went back up strongly to tie the game. In the next offence, Storm ‘A’ again could not score as they lost the ball out of bounds. Coach Jones called timeout with 28 seconds to go, but coming out of the timeout there was a miscommunication as the shot clock expired. Coach Livesey and Crotty called time to set up the final play off the game, but in the remaining four second they failed to get a shot off. Overtime here we come.
Storm ‘B’ started slowly in the overtime period, as Baker scored four points and both Temel and Barton split two sets of foul shots, giving Storm ‘A’ a 56 – 50 lead. Taylor opened the account for Storm ‘B’ on the offensive glass again and Lawson scored a break away law-up to bring Storm ‘B’ back into the game. Taylor (Storm ‘B’) and Baker (Storm ‘A’) then exchanged further baskets in the middle section of the overtime period. In the final minute, Storm ‘B’ found themselves back in front, they added two more as Kwok stole the ball and found Taylor streaking down court to finish on the break. It came down to Storm ‘A’ needing a three to tie, but the shot rimmed out and Temel scored on the put back. Storm ‘B’ in bounded the ball and the buzzer expired. Storm ‘B’ had won by one point.
Jonathon Baker again led Storm ‘A’ in scoring and did his fair share of work at the defensive end. Ulas Temel improved and helped control the boards while Rhys Barotn looked much livelier in the second game. Billy Merrick also showed off some improving ball handling skills, by keeping it simple and looking up to find team mates – something that he struggled with in the first game. For Storm ‘B’, Yung Kwok continued to grow in confidence throughout the tournament and Lewis Daly and Ryan Burton also showed signs of being more assured. Guy Taylor though led Storm ‘B’ with 50 points. To his credit though, it was not a one man show – by no means did he play one-on-one basketball exclusively. The majority of his points came either off good passing as his team mates found him open or from his own hard work crashing the offensive glass and putting the ball straight back up.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 19, Temel 6, *Lander 4, *Merrick 4, Grey 4, Barton 4, Amhoff 2, Ireson, , Gubbins, H. Baker, coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 50, Stockley 4, Kwok 3, Lawson 2, Burton 1, Williams, Daly, Law, Tremain, Tadman, Clapcott, Kelly, coached by Jill Jones.
Cadets Vs Tamar – 11-03-2006
Dorset Storm (15, 17, 19, 17) 68 Tamar Valley Cannons (19, 16, 15, 13) 63
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Livesey 18, Marlow 14, Grant 11, James 10, Robinson 6, Adamson 4, Power 4, Hayward, Crotty, Roffe.
Juniors Vs Gwent – 11-03-2006
Dorset Storm (9, 18, 14, 10) 51 Gwent BBC (29, 12, 22, 19) 82
This week saw Storm’s Junior Men being matched up against Gwent. The team looked a little light weight with Michael Brake, Jamie Lines and James Hilton all missing. The team wanted to put the disappointment of last week against Taunton behind them and were looking for a high energy performance. Louis Gibson and Adam Cran rejoined the starting five to replace the absent Brake and Lines. Also in the starting line up were Luke Miller, Steven Livesey and David Tite.
The first quarter saw a slow start as both teams found their feet and exchanged baskets, after some early shots went astray for both teams. At the mid-point of the 1st quarter the game was being controlled by Gwent, with the score 12 – 3. This forced Storm to call a timeout and Miller, Livesey and Cran responded as all three scored baskets in the next two minutes, bringing Storm back into the game. However in the last two minutes of the quarter Gwent went ton a 12 – 2 tear courtesy of five turnovers by the home team, taking the quarter 29 – 9.
The second quarter saw Gwent extend their lead further in the opening minute scoring a basket in transition. After this, Storm managed to put a run of their own together, with baskets from Cran, Livesey and Gibson forcing Gwent to call a timeout to regroup. Storm continued to apply good pressure at the defensive end meaning that they managed to close the gap, and claw their way back to within fourteen points separating the teams at the intermission.
Storm started well in the third, as they attacked the hoop strongly and moved the ball well around the perimeter. The improved ball movement and execution at the offensive end coincided with good defensive intensity, with Tite and Gibson working particularly hard to pressure Gwent’s guards. Gwent continued to fight and kept the score board ticking over. It was a good quarter from Storms point of view with some good basketball at both ends of the floor, but having shot less than 50% from the line it is no surprise to see Gwent edge the quarter by a few points.
The final quarter saw Storm continue to work hard. This meant that Storms continued to improve their basketball as they took greater care in what they were doing. They also improved at the defensive end and apart from a couple of uncontested shots did quite a good job in making life difficult for their opponents. Dominic Stuart and Laurence Yeats both scored good baskets early in the quarter.
It was a good performance from the home side and despite the loss plenty of positives can be taken from the match. Captain Steven Livesey had another solid game with 10 points and five assists, along with good defensive intensity from David Tite and Louis Gibson. Adam Cran top scored despite missing several chances inside, getting to the foul line an impressive 16 times. If the team continues to play with high intensity on defence and composure and patience at the offensive end then they are in good position to secure a win against Southampton Trailblazers who they visit next Sunday.
Scorers: *Cran 20, *Livesey 12, *Miller 6, *Gibson 5, Stuart 4, * Tite 2, Yeats 2, Morgan.
Passerelle Boys Vs Spelthorne Atoms – 11-03-2006
Dorset Storm 42 Spelthorne Atoms 125 Smashing Atoms blow out Storm. Dorset Storm U15 team travelled to Spelthorne College in Staines to play the Atoms. Storm were confident heading into the first round of the National League Playoffs. Although missing James Hilton and Bradley Kirby, Storm were keen to progress and put on a good show. It was not to be. The Spelthorne Atoms used the home court advantage to great effect taking a quick 8-0 lead. Dorset were not too disheartened, some quick defensive steals from David Reynolds kick started the Storm offence with a free throw followed by a three point play. It was a free flowing first quarter with the Atoms finishing 31 - 16 in the lead, but with David Reynolds scoring 11 in the quarter for Storm. The second quarter started poorly for Storm, Guy Taylor picked up two quick fouls to give him 3 for the game, forcing a substitution. Martyn Williams and Peter Thomson played strongly but up against the 6’ 3" forwards from the Atoms it was a one sided quarter. With Guy out of the game the Atoms went on a run outscoring Storm 22 - 6 in the quarter to lead 53-22 at the half. To Storm’s credit they never gave in and the confidence in the team at the half was excellent, they went out at the start of the 3rd quarter determined to show what they could do. For the first seven minutes of the quarter Storm kept the pace with the Atoms. However, the Atoms then decided to put a press on in the latter stages of the quarter and stretched their lead to 93-32 at the end of the 3rd, effectively putting the game out of reach. The forth quarter was a formality for Spelthorne, but Storm kept fighting. The game finished with Spelthorne winning 125-42 and putting an end to the season for Storm. Scorers: *Reynolds 26, *Lines 6, *Thomson 4, Baker 2, *Taylor 2, *Barker 2, Williams, Clarke.
Local League Special Matches – 12-03-2006
This weekend saw Dorset Storm entertain two teams from Southampton Trailblazers. Trailblazers’ highly successful Under 14 Boys team and a mix and match of Under 16s and Under 15s travelled to Rossmore Leisure Centre for a pair of matches.
Dorset Storm Cadet Boys (9, 8, 20, 13) 50 Southampton Trailblazers U14s BAM (16, 20, 12, 20) 69
Dorset Storm Cadet Men played host to Southampton Trailblazers to aid Blazers playoff preparation. A strong start from Trailblazers saw them take an early 10 point lead in the first quarter. Storm fought their way back to close the deficit back to five points. Trailblazers continued their disciplined performance and opened up a lead of 23 points at one stage. Storm slowly worked their way back into the match with the help of eight points from Robinson and two triples from Livesey but they never managed to cut the deficit by any meaningful amount. In the end the impressive Trailblazers team were worthy victors.
Scorers: *Livesey 15, *Robinson 13, *Grant 12, *Power 6, *James 2, Crotty, Hayward, Adamson.
Dorset Storm (14, 10, 13, 10) 47 Southampton Trailblazers U16s/U15s (24, 21, 13, 21) 79
The second game of the day saw a Dorset Storm team play Trailblazers Under 15s / Under 16s team. Storm took an early lead through Pratik Tamang, with Guy Taylor and Stephen Hayward also adding scores early. There was a clear size advantage to the Trailblazers team, but Storm battled hard and made it a real battle to control the boards. Storm played solid defence throughout the match, although at times struggled to break down Trailblazers intimidating 3 – 2 zone. Tamang continued to find gaps in defence and Declan Carter added scores from the perimeter as Storm got to grips with their task at the offensive end.
Harmony Wong played some tough defence and Sam Grant helped the scoring tick over in the second half. James Lines, Tamang and Grant all scored baskets early in the final quarter. In the end Trailblazers dominance on the offensive boards was a key factor as they were winners for the second time in the day. Pratik Tamang was the top point’s scorer, but Arlen Pollintine also performed particularly well, collecting numerous rebounds and playing good defence.
Scorers: *Tamang 20, Grant 7, Carter 5, Hayward 4, *Taylor 4, *Lines 3, *Thomson 2, Adamson, Wong, Pollintine coached by Adam Cran.
Cadets Vs Torbay – 18-03-2006
Dorset Storm 52 YMCA Torbay Tigers 63
No report received from team coach.
Scorers: Unknown
Juniors Vs Southampton – 19-03-2006
Dorset Storm (15, 25, 11, 16) 67 Southampton Trailblazers (39, 18, 20, 16) 103
Dorset Storms Junior Men’s team travelled down the A31 for their nearest away match of the season. The team was once again not at full strength with Louis Gibson as well as Under 15s players Jamie Lines and James Hilton all missing. The teams previously met in the last match of 2005 in what was a close encounter over the first 25 minutes or so. But a lapse in concentration by the home side allowed the Southampton team to come away with the win at the buzzer. The tip-off time had been brought forward slightly and the venue changed to the unusually warm sports hall at Romsey School, due to the fire that had shut Mountbatten School the week before.
Storm opened up with Luke Miller and David Tite in the back court, and Steven Livesey, Adam Cran and Michael Brake up front. The opening score of the game came early for Storm as Brake scored inside; this was followed up shortly later by a good defensive play by Tite who found Cran on the break for his first score of the contest. Trailblazers kept coming though and Allen, Froud and Kelly combined to score 12 points in the next four minutes to put the visitors under some pressure. Despite a timeout being called by Storms bench, Trailblazers maintained their momentum. At times though, Storm made life a little easy for their opponents, giving up rebounds after missed foul shots and playing some questionable transition defence. At the other end of the court Cran and Brake continued to find the gaps it the home sides trapping defence. Despite this, the massive total of 39 points that Trailblazers had amassed provided Storm with a daunting task to get back into the match.
Entering the second quarter, there was the potential for foul problems as both Brake and Livesey had picked up two fouls. Storm came out continuing to throw different defences at the home side in an attempt to make them miss! At the offensive end, good passing in particular by Livesey and Tite found the gaps allowing Miller, Cran and Brake to get good looks at the basket which they regularly took advantage off. At the end of the quarter Storm had managed to make a seven point inroad into the home sides lead.
Opening the second half, Storm knew that they had to at best contain their opponents and in reality have a miraculous performance. It didn’t look like it was going to happen though, as the home side again came out all guns blazing. In the third quarter they added another 30 points to the total without having much trouble. For Storm, Livesey provided some resistance scoring a couple of baskets while also rebounding the ball well on the occasions when Trailblazers were off target. Laurence Yeats also made an impact off the bench in the third, with a neat finish inside.
The fourth quarter was going to be a matter of restoring some pride and trying to grind the score back to the realms of respectability. Brake started the quarter strongly getting to the foul line and scoring a basket from the perimeter. Storm kept fighting at the defensive end and as the home team started to tire and miss fire they controlled the rebounds in the quarter. Cran also started to heat up at the offensive end again as he scored eight in the quarter. Unfortunately it was too little too late as Trailblazers ran out more than comfortable winners in the end.
Heading into the match, Storm had high hopes of winning this match. They were feeling good after a promising result against Gwent the previous week. Despite Storm playing some good basketball, Trailblazers were always in control of the game. To the home sides credit they shot the ball outstandingly well especially in the opening three quarters of the match. There were some pleasing aspects to be taken once again for the improving Storm side. Storm played with improving patience at the offensive end and their good ball movement allowed Adam Cran once again to have a hatful of opportunities inside as scored 34 points. Steven Livesey and David Tite had good games too both at the defensive end and showed good ball handling skills dishing out five assist’s each.
Next week, Storm host Gloster Blazers in their final league game of the season. The match, rearranged from the second week in the season (!) will be one that Storm are anxious to win and finish the season on a high.
Scorers: *Cran 34, *Brake 12, *Miler 10, Yeats 4, *Livesey 4, *Tite 3, Stuart, Morgan.
Juniors Vs Gloster – 25-03-2006
Dorset Storm (23, 17, 19, 22, 8) 89 (after overtime) Gloster Blazers (22, 27, 15, 17, 3) 84
In the final National League match of the season Storms Junior Men entertained the Gloster Blazers at Rossmore Leisure Centre. Storm had at their disposal a full strength team, something of an infrequent luxury in recent weeks. Gloster sitting joint third in the league going into the match are having a good season. The last time the teams played, Gloster won the game with a strong second half performance having played aggressively and been hard working throughout.
Storm opened with the same five as in previous weeks, with the David Tite and Luke Miller in the back court, while captain Steven Livesey, Adam Cran and Michael Brake making up the forward line. Cran and Brake opened up with a couple of baskets each. The visitors responded with some good plays of their own. A couple of early fouls though saw Brake heading for the bench, but Louis Gibson entered and continued where Brake had left off, scoring on a strong drive. Cran continued to have his own way offensively, but he was helped by Laurence Yeats who banged one in from the perimeter and Arran Morgan helped out at the defensive end grabbing some important rebounds. At the end of a topsy-turvy first quarter, the home side held a slender lead, 23 – 22.
Storm opened up the second quarter strongly with a six point run to open up a led of 29 – 22. Points from Cran, Brake and Morgan helped them on their way. Gloster though responded with a seven point run of their own, tying the ball game at 29. Cran and then Miler on the break responded for Storm and the teams exchanged baskets once again. It was in the fifth minute of the quarter that the first real lead of the ball game became apparent. Storm switched off at the defensive end of the court and gifted Gloster three open three point shots, which lead to six quick points for the visitors. They followed this up with a further score forcing Storm to have to call a timeout to bring an end to their run. Storm came out and Steven Livesey found an open Adam Cran under the basket for an easy score and he also got a bonus shot. Dominic Stuart made a couple of good defensive plays towards the end of the quarter, but despite this the teams just exchanged baskets for the remainder of the quarter. Storm finished the quarter trailing by nine, 49 – 40.
Opening the second half the home team knew that they would have to avoid losing concentration at the defensive end of the court. They started well as Tite stole the ball early and Miller was able to finish on the break three times in the opening two minutes. This improved defensive intensity continued throughout most of the quarter, and with Storms improving decision making and patience at the offensive end they managed to slowly eat away into the Gloster lead. In the closing minutes of the quarter the lead for Gloster was down to just four points but Charter stepped up and drained two threes, the second of which was from way downtown. A cheap steal at the defensive end for Gloster saw them again put an eight point run together. Brake and Gibson added points first and then Miller scored again on the break with another good pass from Livesey to again reduce the deficit. With a lot of hard work the home side had cut the difference to just five points.
Storm had completed half the job by winning the third quarter by four, meaning that they had to win the next quarter by five or more. Gibson set about making inroads into the deficit, getting to the line as well as scoring a basket. Some top quality ball movement and patience on offence allowed the home team to score regularly. The Gloster side also had to contend with foul trouble. Although ironically it was foul trouble that caught up with Storm first as Brake fouled out with four minutes remaining in the contest. On the next offence though, Livesey found Tite cutting along the baseline who gathered himself and went strongly to the basket drawing the fifth and final foul on Nottage. Tite made both the foul shots and reduced the deficit to one point. Gloster though got a score on the next offence restoring their lead. Livesey and Cran scored seven points over the next five offences to help Storm claw their way back. Following a timeout with thirty seconds left, Livesey found himself at the line where he made both to tie the game at 79. Gloster got a score on the next offence as Hall worked his way along the baseline. Down two, Storm called a timeout with 8 seconds remaining, and not only did this allow them to draw up their final play but much more importantly allowed them to inbound the ball at half court meaning that they didn’t have to worry about beating a Gloster press. Livesey in-bounded the ball, and the ball found its way to Cran who attacked the basket and when the help side came he was able to find Gibson, who converted the lay-up to tie the game at 81. Gloster failed to score in the remaining two seconds so we were heading into overtime!
Storm continued with Miller, Tite and Gibson at the guard spots with Cran and Livesey at the forward positions. Storm had control of the basketball thanks to the directional arrow, and on the first offence, Tite found the cutting Cran to bring the first score of the extra period up for Storm. The game then went scoreless for the next two minutes. But the next action in the match saw Gloster tie the game, and Cran responded getting to the line and making both shots. Livesey then also got himself to the line, followed by Tite, but both failed to convert either attempt. Gloster had a similar fate at the opposite end and in the final minute, Cran scroed again attacking the hoop and slotted two foul shots home as Gloster attempted to stop the clock. In the overtime period the home side managed to outscore their opponents by 8 – 3, giving them the victory,
For Storm there were key contributions from a number of players. Adam Cran was excellent – narrowly missing out on a triple double as he scored 36 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and dished out seven assists. Louis Gibson racked up a double double with 11 points and 12 boards along with his normal hustle. While both Steven Livesey and David Tite also played solid defence against Gloster’s main scorers, making them work hard for every basket, while Luke Miller and Michael Brake contributed 12 and 11 points respectively. It was a great team effort though that won the game in the end, with fantastic composure at the offensive end and hard work at the defensive end. It was the final NBL game for three of the players as Cran, Livesey and Brake will be moving onto pastures new next year so they ended on a high note.
Scorers: *Cran 36, *Miller 12, *Livesey 11, *Brake 11, Gibson 11, *Tite 4, Yeats 2, Morgan 2, Stuart, Hilton DNP.
Local League Under 14s and Under 16s Tournament – 02-04-2006
First up, Dorset Storm played host to Bridport Evolution in a three team tournament for Under 14s. Storm entered two teams, appropriately named Storm ‘A’ and Storm ‘B’ and Bridport brought a team to the Storm Zone aka Rossmore Leisure Centre. Following the Under 14s tournament, a match between Dorset Storms Under 16s and Bridport’s Under 16s would round off the day.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (15, 8, 9, 9) 41 Bridport Evolution U14s (10, 2, 13, 11) 36
In the first game of the day, Storm I were looking to get off to a good start against Bridport Evolution. Storm started strongly with Jonathon Baker netting seven of the first nine points in the match for the home side. Bridport hit back however and closed the gap to five at the end of the first quarter. Some good ball handling from Billy Merrick and finishing from Dean Grey and Baker once again, saw Storm continue to build on their first quarter lead. Much of their good offensive work though had been undone at the defensive end, where lead boots and greedy hands saw them pick up 14 first half fouls and resulted in some players seeing extended time sat down due to foul trouble. In the second half, an improved team defensive display and some good finishing on the break by Alex Lander and Chris Amhoff saw Storm continue to build on a solid first half but they failed to completely shake off the resilient Bridport side. In the end though Storm came out winners, but have plenty of things to improve on especially at the defensive end. Jonathon Baker lead all scorers with 17 points, but some good work in the second half by Chris Amhoff and Alex Lander saw Storm home.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 17, *Lander 7, Grey 6, *Merrick 4, Barton 3, *Amhoff 2, Temel 2, Worsfold, Gubbins, *Green, coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (15, 4, 12, 12) 43 Bridport Evolution U14s (6, 10, 6, 14) 36
Storm II, still riding high on their overtime win at the last tournament were next to entertain the visiting Bridport side. Early on, Guy Taylor was a force on the boards, and Adam Stockley displayed some sharp shooting skills. Despite having a nine point lead at the end of the first quarter, Bridport worked their way back and cut Storms lead to just three points at the intermission. Starting the second half, Ryan Burton played some great defence and also scored a good basket. It was a quarter that the home side dominated and extended their lead to a relatively comfortable margin. Storm managed to hold on in the final quarter and several good hustle plays at the defensive end from Ted Tremain and others were important in the closing minutes. Guy Taylor helped his side control the boards and some strong defensive play from Jack Abrahams and Matthew Lawson also made life tough for the visitors.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 31, *Stockley 6, *Kwok 2, Abrahams 2, Burton2, Lawson, Tremain, Daly, *Kelly, *Williams, Law, coached by Jill Jones.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (25, 21, 7, 9) 62 Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (0, 13, 16, 4) 33
In the final Under 14s match of the day, it was back to the interclub tournament. Storm I certainly had the bit between their teeth early on as they raced away to an early lead. Storm II, struggled to focus and as is the way in these shortened tournament games, time quickly elapsed and they had failed to score in the first quarter! Guy Taylor helped Storm II get on the board three minutes into the second quarter as he scored inside and converted the and-1 opportunity from the foul line. He followed this up with several more tough baskets in the quarter, helped by the rapidly improving play of Matthew Law. Storm I, once again lead by the impressive Jonathon Baker were firing on all cylinders, as six different players scored in the second quarter. Storm II, after a few words from coach Jones fired her team up in her usual fashion and rapid-fire substitutions followed as Storm II continued to fight back during the second half. In the end though the 25 point first quarter deficit proved too much of an obstacle to overcome. Jonathon Baker was again in outstanding form scoring 30 points and playing his usual hard-nosed defence while Alex Lander scored 11 points and pulled down an impressive number of boards. Under 11 player Georgie Worsfold also demonstrated the ability to play at Under 14s with an assured performance and Ulas Temel showed us his finishing ability inside scoring with a variety of moves. For Storm II, Guy Taylor and Yung Kwok again led the team, supported particularly well on this occasion by Adam Stockley and Ryan Burton.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 30, *Lander 11, *Temel 10, *Barton 4, *Amhoff 3, Grey 2, Green 2, Worsfold, Merrick, Gubbins, coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty. Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: Taylor 23, *Kwok 6, *Stockley 4, *Lawson, Tremain, Daly, Williams, Kelly, Burton, *Law, *Abrahams, coached by Jill Jones.
Dorset Storm U16s (15, 26, 14, 32) 97 Bridport Evolution U16s (13, 15, 19, 12) 59
In the final match of the day, the Under 16s teams from both Storm and Bridport would showdown. Early on the home side came out slowly; Bridport though came out firing and took advantage of some poor play by Storm in building up an early lead. Following a timeout by coach Cran, Jamie Lines and David Reynolds scored baskets for the home side and James Hiltons introduction also helped. Storm improved at the defensive end in the closing minutes of the first quarter and during the second quarter, eliminating the happy-go-lucky shot swatting that preceded in the early going. Pratik Tamang opened the second quarter with a bang for the home team as he scored the first eight points of the quarter. Storm continued to dominate the quarter as they piled on the points. In the second half, Bridport fought back and closed the gap. But Jamie Lines helped drive his team forward with some good defensive play and strong finishing. He was again helped by Pratik Tamang and David Reynolds who continued to finish well. In the final quarter, Storm were able to pile on the pressure. Arlen Pollintine and Ben Harris played particularly well in the final quarter, both exploiting gaps in the Bridport defence. Pratik Tamang top scored with 32 points despite a slow start, with a whole host of points coming in the second quarter. David Reynolds scored 18 points and played stringent defensive on Bridport’s guards. But it was Jamie Lines who produced the outstanding performance for the home side, scoring 27 points but grabbing numerous boards and showing assured ball handling skills throughout.
Dorset Storm U16s Scorers: *Tamang 32, *Lines 27, *Reynolds 18, Hilton 13, Pollintine 3, Harris 2, *Carter 2, *White, Wong, Marchese, Liu, coached by Adam Cran.
Local League Under 14s and Under 16s Tournament – 09-04-2006
First up, Dorset Storm played host to Whiteley Oaks in a three team tournament for Under 14s. Storm entered their normal two teams, appropriately named Storm ‘A’ and Storm ‘B’ and Whiteley brought a different team, for their second visit of the season to Rossmore Leisure Centre. Following the Under 14s tournament, a match between Dorset Storms Under 16s and a emergency mix and match team would round off the day.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (11, 7, 8, 11, 3) 40 (after overtime) Whiteley Oaks U14s (6, 9, 10, 12, 2) 39
Storm ‘A’ started well in this game, as Jonathon Baker and Ulas Temel both scored with good inside moves. Whiteley responded with scores of their own, but with Tom Green and Ulas Temel in the ball game Storm had two players capable of dominating the boards – as both added further scores for Storm in the quarter their effect was clear. Storm continued their good work in the second quarter with good ball movement and made the Whiteley defence stretch to the limit. Despite good work at the offensive end from Storm, Whiteley managed to pull their way back into the game and trailed by just three points. Whiteley started well in the second half, and by the mid-way point in the quarter had taken the lead for the first time in the match. A time-out by Storm halted the run and the players came out with more focus, Ulas Temel added two baskets as he found space under the basket and Rhys Barton flew into action. Storm continued to play well in the final stanza, but could not shake Whiteley off who, entering the final minute had a three point lead. A foul saw Jonathon Baker put on the line where he split the two shots. After what seemed like an endless amount of pressure from Storm, Jonathan Baker found himself open on the wing where he converted the shot to tie the game at 37 points apiece. There was still time for a final shot from Whiteley, but the shot rimmed out. Entering overtime, Storm played aggressive defence and attacked the basket well, getting to the foul line often. Unfortunately they failed to convert more than one and as Whiteley scored at the other end Storm looked dead and buryied. Storm kept pushing the ball and it was Baker who again scored driving to the hoop, to give Storm a one point lead. Coming back the other end, Storm committed the worst foul possible (fouling a shooter) giving Whiteley two shots from the foul line. Fortunately for Storm both shots were missed meaning that Storm held on to win by one point in overtime. It could have been a more comfortable margin, as Storm shot just 2 out of 12 from the foul line in the final minute of the game and the over time period! Jonathon Baker was the top scorer for Storm and dominated down the closing straight. He was well supported by good play from Rhys Barton and a strong inside presence by Ryan Goddard.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 18, *Temel 8, *Barton 6, *Lander 2, Goddard 2, Grey 2, *Green 2, Worsfold, Gubbins, H. Baker coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (16, 2, 2, 5) 25 Whiteley Oaks U14s (8, 18, 16, 16) 56
Storm II, were looking to continue their improving play. They started well, as Guy Taylor found his way to the basket and easy inside scores. Peter McCafferty also added points off the bench as the home side raced out to an early eight point lead. Whiteley began to pull the score back in the second quarter as there seemed to be a lid on Storms basket. Matthew Lawson and Ryan Burton both played good defence making life hard for Whiteley. However by the half way mark, the guests had moved into an eight point lead. Storm continued to struggle at the offensive end throughout the second half, but by now the visitors had found their rhythm and were extending their lead. Despite the Whiteley lead expanding, the team continued to play hard at the defensive end of the court, and a huge triple by Jack Abrahams saw the home side finish the match well. Guy Taylor led all scorers, but had a quiet game by his standards. Peter McCafferty also played well in his first game for Storm.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 16, McCafferty 4, Abrahams 3, *Kwok 2, *Lawson, Tremain, Williams, *Stockley, *Kelly, Burton coached by Jill Jones.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (14, 8, 16, 10) 48 Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (10, 9, 9, 6) 34
As ever, the final Under 14s match of the day saw Storms two Under 14s team square up to each other in what is normally a high tempo and intense affair. Storm I started well, as Jonathon Baker, picked up where he left off in the last game, scoring 10 points in the first quarter. Guy Taylor responded with scores for Storm II, he was helped along by Adam Stockley who after being very quiet in the first match scored his opening basket of the day. Ulas Temel though used his size to good effect, challenging shots and scoring inside to help Storm I hang on to a lead at the half way stage. Alex Lander also looked more comfortable in this match as he found his way to the basket and converted several lay-ups. During the second half, Storm I continued to extend their lead as Ulas Temel continued to add points along with Lander and the impressive looking Barton also found his way to the hoop and played uncompromising defence. As the game closed, Storm I won their second consecutive interclub match. For Storm I, Ulas Temel was particularly impressive pulling down a large number of rebounds and scoring 14 points with a variety of moves inside finishing with soft hands. Rhys Barton also continued his good play from the first game. For Storm II, Peter McCafferty looked good in his first set of games for the club, while Ryan Burton also played well.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: *J. Baker 22, *Temel 14, *Lander 8, *Barton 4, Worsfold, H. Baker, Gubbins, Goddard, Grey, Green coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty. Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 19, Stockley 7, *McCafferty 4, Burton 2, *Kwok 2, *Lawson, Tremain, Williams, Kelly, *Abrahams coached by Jill Jones.
Dorset Storm U16s (5, 10, 19, 25) 59 Mix and Match (16, 24, 20, 15) 75
The concluding match of the day saw Storm Under 16s in action once again. Their opposition today was a rather hurriedly assembled mix and match team, including both regular National League starters as well as Jonathon Baker and Guy Taylor who where invited to play up. Early on there was little to pick between the teams, with the scores tied at two several minutes into the game. Sam Grant and Michael Livesey though injected some pace into the game, and helped the mix and match team take an early lead forcing Storm Under 16s to call a timeout. Following the timeout, Storm Under 16s came out much stronger and created some good shooting opportunities but nothing would fall for them. The mix and match team continued to push the tempo and challenge Storms Under 16s transition defence. The introduction of Guy Taylor also boosted the mix and match team as he found space and scored inside strongly on several occasions. James Hilton and Jamie Lines provided the resistance for Storms Under 16s, but despite their good work a gap opened up towards the closing stages of the first half. Coach Cran though, successfully rallied his troops as they opened up much stronger in the second half with James Hilton, Arlen Pollintine and Reece Barker all scoring early on. Dominic Stuart scored five quick points to relieve some of the pressure from the mix and match team. Michael Livesey continued to apply the pressure but Jamie Lines had an answer as they scored the closing six and five points of the quarter for their respective teams. In the final quarter, it was Michael Livesey and Jamie Lines who continued to pour on the points for their respective teams, scoring ten points each. It was Jamie Lines who got more support from his team mates though as Reece Barker, Pratik Tamang and James Hilton all helped out scoring baskets as Storms Under 16s closed the gap. In the end though, a first half that produced just 15 points provided too much of an obstacle for the team to overcome. For the mix and match team, Michael Livesey scored a game high 28 points, supported by his normal partner Sam Grant who added 18. Guy Taylor scored nine off the bench also. For Storms Under 16s, Jamie Lines again led the team with an impressive 19 points and good ball handling and rebounding display. Pratik Tamang also continued to pile on the points scoring 18 while Matt Holden had a good first match for Storm with some solid defence.
Dorset Storm U16s Scorers: *Lines 19, *Tamang 18, Hilton 8, *Barker 7, Thomson 3, *Pollintine 2, Holden, Wong, Carter, Marchese, *Liu coached by Adam Cran. Dorset Storm Mix and Match Scorers: *Livesey 28, *Grant 18, *Gibson 9, Taylor 9, *Stuart 5, Crotty 5, *Adamson 2, Donohoe, J. Baker.
Local League Under 14s and Under 16s Tournament – 14-05-2006
Storm welcomed Bridport Evolution back to Rossmore Leisure Centre, for their second visit of the season. Once again Storm were able to field three teams full of enthusiastic players relishing the chance to play. For the Under 14s, it would be their last three team tournament of the season. Whilst Storms Under 16s would be looking forward to gaining yet more experience, and putting the training into practice.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (5, 12, 6, 17) 40 Bridport Evolution (14, 11, 12, 4) 41
Storm II started slowly in the opening match of the tournament with some poor defence, mainly not putting any reasonable amount of pressure on the basketball. Over the quarter break, something changed in coach Kemish’s team as they came out again with renewed vigour. This improved defensive execution led to more confidence at the offensive end. Good ball movement provided open shots for numerous players, but it was Yung Kwok who was particularly effective as he penetrated into the heart of Bridport’s zone defence time and time again. Storm continued to improve and with 18 seconds remaining they called a time out as they had fought their way back to be down by just three points. Out of the timeout, the team looked for the game tying triple. Unfortunately the team struggled to get a clean look at the basket, and the missed shot was put back by Guy Taylor as time ran out.
Yung Kwok showed his continually improving ball handling skills, along with the composure to score and pass under pressure and was the games leading scorer. Guy Taylor did his usual work on the glass helped out by Matthew Law. In the end however, the slow start provided too much of an obstacle for the young Storm side.
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Kwok 14, *Taylor 13, Stockley 7, Daly 4, McCafferty 2, *Tremain, *Law, *Barton, Ofei-Kwatia, Abrahams, coached by Jill Kemish.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (10, 8, 12, 4) 34 Bridport Evolution (4, 7, 11, 8) 30
Storm Under 14s A were looking to continue their recent good run of form. They knew that they would have their work cut out with their leading scorer and captain Jonathon Baker only available in a supporting capacity due to injury. Storm A started strongly as Tom Green, Ulas Temel, Steven Ireson and Alex Lander all scored in the early going. Bridport came fighting back however, but Green again provided scores working hard for offensive put backs. Storm A continued to build a lead, with the young Steven Ireson taking good care of the basketball. Although they slowed down somewhat in the closing minutes of the game, the good work that they had done early on saw them through. Tom Green and Ulas Temel led the scoring, dominating the paint for the home team as their roll kept on rolling!
Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scores: *Green 8, Temel 8, *Lander 6, Grey 6, *Ireson 2, Smith 2, *Merrick 2, *Gubbins, Goddard, coached by James Crotty and Michael Livesey.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U14s (6, 8, 14, 16) 44 Dorset Storm ‘B’ U14s (16, 16, 12, 8) 52
Storm B started this game with great energy that somewhat stifled their more experienced counter parts in the Storm A team. The early pressure caused coaches Livesey and Crotty to call a timeout. Despite this Storm A failed to get into any sort of rhythm as Guy Taylor and Yung Kwok continued to pile on the points. Alex Lander and Ulas Temel were starting to get a feel for the game in the second half as they lead the fight back. It was too little too late however as Storm B were able to hold on for their second victory of the season over Storm A.
Storm B can put the win down to some great intensity at the defensive end of the court. For Storm B, Guy Taylor had his best game for a while with 28 points, to go with numerous offensive rebounds and assists. For Storm A Ulas Temel scored 10 points and completed a good days work, helped particularly well on this occasion by Ryan Goddard who provided extra toughness inside. In the end it was the great team play from Storm B that saw them “hunt in packs” and pull off the well deserved victory.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ Scorers: Lander 10, Temel 10, Merrick 8, Goddard 8, *Grey 8, *Ireson, *Gubbins, *Smith, *Green coached by Michael Livesey and James Crotty. Dorset Storm ‘B’ Scorers: *Taylor 28, *Kwok 14, McCafferty 4, *Burton 4, *Stockley 2, Daly, Tremain, Law, *Ofei-Kwatai, Abrahams, coached by Jill Kemish.
Dorset Storm ‘A’ U16s (14, 17, 24, 18) 73 Bridport Evolution (10, 12, 2, 8) 32
Storm Under 16s would play Bridport in the final match of the day. Arlen Pollintine opened the scoring for the home side, quickly helped out by Jamie Lines and James Hilton. The team worked hard at the defensive end of the court with Declan Carter, Bradley Kirby and Lewis Clarke maintaining the pressure as they came into the game. It was the third quarter where coach Cran’s team really applied the pressure. Some excellent play at the defensive end provided the catalyst for easy baskets at the offensive end of the court. The team continued to move the ball well and with 10 players scoring it is always going to be hard to stop a team with so many scoring options. Jamie Lines led all scorers as well as doing his share of the ball handling helping out the inexperienced back court, while Arlen Pollintine battled hard inside against some bigger and stronger players.
Dorset Storm U16s Scorers: *Lines 16, Hilton 15, *Pollintine 10, *Liu 10, Carter 6, Hewins 6, Clarke 4, Wong 2, *Williams 2, *Crotty 2, Kirby, coached by Adam Cran.
Juniors Vs UWIC – 18-02-2006
Dorset Storm (, , , ) ? UWIC Stealers (, , , ) ?
Scorers: Unknown
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