Basketball returned to the newly-named Bugler StormDome on Sunday evening and it was the home side who were victorious, overcoming Team Solent Kestrels 86-79 in their final pre-season matchup before the BCB Trophy begins next weekend.
There were new faces aplenty in the ranks of Jake Rothauge, who had his first experience sitting in the main seat having stepped up from assistant to head coach over the summer, and American Matt Norman was particularly impressive, racing out the blocks with a three-point blitz to endear himself to his new fanbase.
Kai Walker displayed the same hustle and hard work Storm had come to envy when in an opposition shirt and Danny Evans added athleticism on both ends of the floor.
It was a familiar face in Darien Nelson-Henry that proved arguably the greatest pest to Solent, though, dominating under the basket and using all his years of top-flight experience to post 18 points.
The seven-point win completes a perfect pre-season for Storm after last week’s victory over Barnet Bulldogs, and attention will now turn to the BCB Trophy double-header next weekend, where they first host Bristol Hurricanes before travelling to Birmingham on Sunday.
They started impressively, playing at a high tempo and forcing Matt Guymon into an early timeout. Norman was the chief trouble-maker, wasting no time in showcasing his shooting ability and the majority of his 19 points appeared to come in the first period, which Storm took by ten - 26-16.
Solent are not part of the newly-formed British Championship Basketball league, instead remaining in the Basketball England setup, but they proved they are more than capable of competing on the big stage here, remaining unperturbed by a slow start to slowly edge their way back into the contest.
British guards Luke Busumbru and Andre Arissol have plenty of Division One experience between them, both as part of Solent’s dominant period between 2018 and 2022 and for other competitive sides such as Worthing Thunder and Essex Rebels. They, alongside former-Storm man Greg Durand, spearheaded the comeback and the trio combined for 51 of Solent’s 79 points, with a further 13 from GB youth international Ethan Round.
The deficit was nine at the halftime break and they continued to chip away in the third period, cutting it to five ahead of the final 10 minutes, with the scoreline reading 61-56 to the home side.
It was tense for Storm and the close-fought contest can only serve as good preparation for the upcoming season, with Rothauge and his troops properly tested. The American used his timeouts to good effect and captain Sam Newman stepped up, connecting with a couple of long-range efforts that acted as the dagger to end the visitors’ hopes. The final buzzer sounded at 86-79 and Storm were left to reflect on a tough assignment, happy to have got the job done.
Subtle tweaks and refinements will no doubt be made ahead of the competitive season beginning next weekend, and tickets are already available for our inaugural BCB Trophy matchup against Bristol Hurricanes on Saturday.
View match night photos here.
Written by Callum Humphrey