The final weekend of the regular season provides Derby Trailblazers with an opportunity to boost
their play-off hopes by climbing the league table as much as possible. A pair of wins could see
them finish sixth or seventh in the final standings, thereby avoiding a difficult quarter-final trip to the
champions, Reading Rockets.
Standing in their way are Hemel Storm, who’s play-off hopes were ended a fortnight ago and
London Cavaliers who are currently two points and two places ahead of the Blazers, with their
penultimate game coming on Saturday as they host second bottom Bristol Hurricanes.
Head Coach Kyle Henderson is therefore well aware of the importance of the two games his side
are facing this weekend:
“We’re obviously very excited going into the last weekend of the regular season. It’s nice that we’ve
already secured our place in the playoffs and I’m really proud of that, but we’ve still got two more
games to go and getting two more wins would give us a higher position in the league table and
potentially an easier first round tie.
“Whilst we didn’t get the win we wanted against Reading last weekend, we’ve played well for the
last five games and we’ve won four out of those five which is a good reflection of what the team is
capable of. We want to keep rolling with that and developing good habits going into our playoff
game regardless of who it’s against.
“Saturday is going to be a tough trip going to Hemel. We know they’ll be without Darian Nelson-
Henry who retired last weekend, but they’ve picked up a nice couple of nice wins recently and they
look like they’re playing in form and a bit more together. Having missed out on the playoffs, they’ll
be playing for pride and looking to end the season with a win on their home court.
“We have to go in there expecting to battle because they’ve got some solid guys with plenty of
experience on their roster. Sam Newman is the king of assists and the big man Brendan Inger had
a great game against us when they came to Derby, so they’re not short of talent and they’re a team
who knows how to compete,” he said.
Nelson-Henry’s retirement will leave a big void for Hemel to fill, as he hung up his boots as the
Storm’s leading scorer and rebounder, averaging 17.2 points and 8.5 rebounds. Matt Norman
averages 16 points and 3.6 rebounds, with Inger adding 15.6 and 6.5, and Kai Walker contributes
11.7 and 5.2, while Newman dishes off a league high 11.3 assists per game.
Looking ahead to Sunday’s re-arranged home fixture, Coach Henderson is appealing to the club’s
loyal supporters to do their bit:
“First and foremost, it’s important we get as many people in the crowd as possible to lend their
support. I know the guys feel it when we have a loud crowd who are supportive for the full forty
minutes regardless of how the game is going on and we need them to be the sixth man.
“We have to beat them by four or more points to be certain of finishing above them if the two clubs
finish level of points in the final league table. They’re another side with some talented veterans and
I’m sure they’re going to be going all out for the win, so we’ve got to make sure we make less
mistakes and take care of the controllable factors that can help us be successful,” he said.
Juan Manning leads the Cavs in scoring with 18.5, with Daniel Braster just behind on 17.7, whilst
also leading the team with 9.0 rebounds. Veteran AJ Roberts adds 14.4ppg, with Marquel Beasley
adding 12.8.
Saturday’s match is a 7:00 PM tip at Hemel Sports Centre, and for those who are unable to travel,
LiveStats will be available via tinyurl.com/7fn7snne.
Sunday’s home game is a 4:30 PM tip-off at the Clarence Wiggins Sports Centre and will be
preceded by a free celebration of girls’ basketball called “Her World – Her Rules” which gets
underway at 1:30 PM and offers an opportunity for players of all abilities to get on court and develop
their skills in a girls only environment.
All attendees and their parents or guardians are invited to stay to watch the BCB game at 4:30 PM,
but for those unable to attend, LiveStats will be available via CLICK ME!
