Hemel Storm’s competitive season begins this weekend as they host Bristol Hurricanes on Saturday, before travelling to face Birmingham Rockets on Sunday - both in the brand new British Championship Basketball Trophy!
The season-opening competition features all 14 teams included in the BCB setup, as well as Scottish invitees Falkirk Fury and Edinburgh Blaze. Storm are in Group Two alongside both this weekend’s opponents and Milton Keynes Breakers, who they host next Saturday.
First, though, they welcome Bristol to the StormDome - the site of last weekend’s pre-season victory over Team Solent Kestrels. That completed a perfect pre-season for new head coach Jake Rothauge and he’ll have learned plenty from the close-fought 86-79 win.
New American star Matt Norman impressed, shooting relentlessly from behind the arc in the first period, while Darien Nelson-Henry was a handful as always and captain Sam Newman came up clutch with a couple of long-range hits at the death.
They were pegged back by Solent after a fast start and Rothauge spoke of some minor “adjustments” he’ll look to make this week in his post-match interview on Saturday, perhaps centring on the efficiency of their defensive rotations now the team have had a couple of decent run outs.
The Hurricanes, who Storm defeated in last season’s playoff quarter-final, have been relatively quiet in the off-season, having announced only three players at the time of writing.
The first of those, Kobe Hill, signed from local side Bristol Basketball United, while Ebuka Ekwegh has made the move from Super League Basketball outfit Bristol Flyers.
Ashley Pearce is their first confirmed re-signing, but a glance at some pre-season training snaps suggests he won’t be the last. Daniel Edozie, Denzel Ubario, Jules Dang-Akodo and Elvisi Dusha - four men with top-flight experience that suited up for the Hurricanes last time out - can all be seen on the club’s Instagram page.
Interestingly, American James Claar, winner of UWE Bristol’s Performance Sports’ MVP award for the last two years, has also announced his return to Bristol on social media. Claar, who was named Hoopsfix Pro-AM MVP this summer, was a large part of the Hurricanes’ promotion-winning campaign in 2023/24 but was unable to take part in Division One last year as a result of VISA issues and it remains to be seen whether these have been resolved.
With no real pre-season footage to work with, compiling a scout report for Saturday’s opponents may prove difficult for Rothauge and his assistant Pierce Maslen. But if they represent something of the unknown, Sunday’s opponents are quite the opposite.
A trip down the motorway to meet Birmingham will reunite Storm with some familiar faces. Stalwarts Orlan Jackman and Martyn Gayle have been around the British basketball scene for years, and Zach Powell returns for a second year with the Rockets, now with a reputation as one of the most explosive men in the league.
Powell started in Birmingham at junior level, before turning professional at 19 with Manchester Giants. A move to Ireland and then Reading followed before heading back to the Rockets last season, where a blend of pace and power saw him average 16.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.
Other re-signings include Lucas McGregor and Luke Okosieme, given the nickname ‘Blockosieme’ thanks to his 69 blocks last season - the second-highest in NBL Division One history.
As for new faces, there’s only one place to start. Ronald Blain may just be Hemel’s greatest pantomime villain, having teased and taunted the Storm faithful in his time at Newcastle Knights, Bradford Dragons and Worthing Thunder over recent years. The love-hate relationship will take on a new setting this season, as the American plies his trade at the Nechells Centre.
The other notable addition is former-Great Britain Under-16 Eric Donaldson, of the Derby Trailblazers in 2022/23. Donaldson has previously spent time as a professional in Brazil and Italy.
Similarly to Storm, Birmingham triumphed in both their pre-season outings, initially defeating lower-ranked opposition in St Helens Saints before testing themselves in a tight win against the BCB’s Loughborough Riders.
Storm were four-point victors in the Midlands back in February and seven points the better in the reverse league fixture at the StormDome in December.
It’s set to be a blockbuster weekend to kickstart the competitive campaign, so make sure you don’t miss out! Tickets for Saturday’s home game (7pm) are available on the Fanbase app and anyone wishing to make the trip to Birmingham on Sunday (5.30pm) can grab their tickets here!
Written by Callum Humphrey
Photo credit – TGD Visuals