WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL: BEARS coach Tom Masterson heaped praise on his side as they came away from Swindon with a convincing First Division South win to continue their winning groove.
Boosted by the news that youngster Aaron Grant had been selected for the Great Britain Under 23s training camp, Bears entered their latest league match on the back of a convincing home win.
And Masterson’s men used last week’s win to spur them onto a 70-44 victory against the Wiltshire side, and the result was never in doubt.
From tip-off, Bears controlled the game and established an early lead with Ben Haigh and Jacob Robinson shooting well from the first few minutes of the game.
Swindon had to rely heavily on their impressive forward Macauley Tomlinson to keep within reach – Tomlinson ended up netting 36 of Shocks’ 44 points.
Bears resisted Tomlinson’s free scoring ability though to end the first quarter with a 9-20 lead.
The Bears added to their early lead into the second quarter.
Once again Ben Haigh dominated the board, with Jacob Robinson finding the basket from the outside as Bears extended their lead to 23 points at half time.
As Bears had established such a significant lead, spots on the court were handed to their bench for some deserved court time.
Bears’ youngsters took full advantage of the chance to earn a 37-57 lead with one-quarter remaining.
The last quarter saw the Bears once again go to their bench, bringing on Aaron Grant.
With the game virtually won, both teams kept the scores ticking over – though Macaulay Tomlinson hit a long range three point shots to keep the Shock score high.
Masterson said: “I’d like to thank Shock for another great game and mention Macauley Tomlinson as well, as he was awesome.
“I’m really pleased with the team today 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. He is a player for the future ”
The Bears are next in action when they host a triple fixture against CWBA 2 and 3 and Cardiff Met Archers on December 3 in Henley-in-Arden.
Entrance is free for all spectators to come along and watch a live game.
