Swindon Shock 44 Warwickshire Bears 70
British Wheelchair Basketball League First Division South
THE BEARS secured a convincing victory on Sunday as they celebrated their up and coming junior Aaron Grant being selected for the Great Britain under 23s training camp.
A first for the junior, this is a fantastic achievement which had all members of the team bursting with pride.
From the tip-off, the Bears took control of the game, building an early lead with Ben Haigh and Jacob Robinson shooting well in the first few minutes.
Swindon had to rely heavily on their impressive forward Macauley Tomlinson to keep within reach, but Bears soon pulled into a 20-9 lead at the end of the quarter.
The Bears kept the scoreboard rising in the second period whilst also maintaining the required levels of pressure on the Swindon team and once again Haigh dominated the board, whilst Robinson found the basket from the outside as the visitors opened a 42-19 advantage by the midway point.
The large lead provided the opportunity for the Bears to give their bench some deserved court time and they took full advantage of this opportunity to maintain the gap between the sides as the third period ended with the visitors leading 57-37.
Grant made a good impression for the Bears in the final quarter and, despite the best efforts of Tomlinson, there was no way back for the hosts.
Bears coach Tom Masterson said: “Firstly I’d like to thank Shock for another great game and mention Macauley Tomlinson as well, as he was awesome, scoring 36 of Shock’s 44 points.
“I’m really pleased with the team as they played some fantastic basketball. Both Ben (Haigh) and Jacob (Robinson) were brilliant. Also, the players who started on the bench came on and made a great contribution.
“I’m also very proud of our youngest player Aaron Grant, who has earned a place at the Great Britain under 23s training camp. He is a player for the future.”
The Bears return to action with a triple fixture against CWBA 2 and 3 and Cardiff Met Archers on December 3 at Warwickshire College in Henley. Entrance is free.
