Hoods Complete Successful Doubleheader Sweep

Harvey Hadden became a fortress on the weekend as the Hoods held their ground after welcoming the Bristol Flyers on Saturday and the Essex Rebels the following day. A dramatic turn of two successive events saw the Hoods return to winning ways as they finished the weekend off with a 2-1 record having ended the previous week 0-1.  

The Hoods were off to a flying start against the Flyers as they entered the back-to-back affair. Joshua Smith-White opened the scoring to kick-off a back and forth contest between the two teams. The early period of the first quarter saw various ties and lead changes as both teams looked to grow into the game early on. The Hoods, however, were first to establish themselves as Coach Stanley introduced a three-guard lineup with Moore replacing JSW 5 minutes into the first. Coach’s call placed Nottingham firmly into the driver’s seat as the third guard addition spaced the floor, allowing a 21-10 run from the Hoods. A three from Chris Moore in the closing minutes of the quarter silenced the Flyers’ bench for the rest of the game as he forced a timeout. The quarter ended 34-22 to the Hoods. 

The remainder of the game mirrored the first period as the Hoods sat comfortably in the lead right until the final buzzer. Cameron Kahn stole the show with a season high of 35 points accompanied with 9 rebounds and 7 steals. The Flyers had no answer for him as he constantly burrowed his way inside, punishing the weaker defence as well as the rim. Chris Moore was another bright spot in the Hoods’ stellar performance with his efficiency, scoring 20 points off the bench whilst maintaining a field-goal percentage of eighty.  

The game against the Essex Rebels proved more of a challenge for the Hoods. Both teams started strong, the Hoods getting out in front early with a 14-5 run at the start before Essex called timeout. Coming out of the timeout, things only got worse for the Rebels as a three from Chris Moore put the Hoods up by ten which was the biggest lead of the period. Just before things got out of hand, the rebels looked to make a comeback as they built a run of their own, stringing together a couple points from the free throw line to see the quarter out - only trailing behind by three.

 The Hoods looked to build on from their first period performance as they continued piling on the pressure in the second. A three pointer from Cisse was able to relieve the pressure as the game remained close for the remainder of the quarter - Essex still chasing the game. The Hoods kept a seven-point lead for most of the period until Johnson-Thompson tied the game at the two-minute mark. The deadlock only lasted a minute as Cam Kahn sank a pair of free throws to place the Hoods ahead by three on the turn of half-time. 

The Rebels took a more physical approach in chasing the game during the third as the Hoods became regulars at the charity stripe. With the constant stoppage of play, the Hoods mustered an eight-point lead towards the end, momentum constantly favouring them as Faaris Mughal sank back-to-back threes. The quarter ended 63-56 after a tip in from Bailey. 

The momentum pendulum swung violently in the final period as the Rebels finally stole the lead as Cisse forced the Hoods into a timeout with a layup inside. Cam Polak instantly replied with a three, restoring the lead as the Hoods were back in front by two. The two teams begun trading shots from deep as West hit a three with Polak responding instantly once again.  After Baumgardner’s trip to the line, the Hoods looked to put the game to bed as their lead came to within one. With three minutes to go, after struggling to score on the inside, the Hoods went up by four with a crucial three from Chris Moore. With the Rebels unable to reply, Cam Kahn brought the lead back to seven with what looked to be the dagger, sending the Rebels to their bench as they called timeout. The Rebels came out the timeout looking for answers, slowly chipping away at the lead as Johnson-Thompson got the short fadeaway to go. Within the final thirty seconds, Cisse fired a transition corner three and the Hoods lead fell to just two. With the clock winding down the Hoods played keep away to stay in front, coming out on top at the final buzzer 79-77.

With the pair of wins the Hoods go 2-1, placing themselves third in the BCB standings. The Hoods will go again today, on the road against Worthing as they look to keep the momentum going. Catch the game live, this evening, at 7:30pm.

By Gabriel-Javis Megueu