STORM BREAK MK'S RESOLVE; ROCKETS ARE LIFT OFF IN BRISTOL AND ESSEX

As the group phase of the BCB Trophy winds down, Hemel Storm are finally off the mark after two agonising losses, and it was double joy for the two Rockets as Birmingham and Reading scored victories.

A blistering second half saw Hemel Storm secure their first win of the season at the expense of the Milton Keynes Breakers.

Five Storm players hit double figures, led by 21 points from the evergreen Matt Norman as they recorded an 89-82 win in front of a sell-out Hemel Sports Centre crowd.

But the win had to be well and truly earned as the Storm fought back from a 42-29 half-time deficit to outscore MK 60-40 in a frantic second half. Darien Nelson-Henry (11 points, 17 rebounds) and Kai Walker (15 points, 11 rebounds) secured double-doubles in the win.

Jordan Spencer was sensational for the Breakers with 33 points, but fell short.

A defensive masterclass from City of Birmingham Rockets helped them score an 80-62 away win over a talented Bristol Hurricanes outfit.

The intensity and focus of the Rockets never faltered as they held the Hurricanes to just 33 percent from the field, while shooting 53 percent themselves. 

Eric Donaldson paced Birmingham with 16 points and 7 rebounds, with Orlan Jackman and Ronald Blain narrowly missing out on double-doubles. Blain added 12 points and 9 boards. Jackman amassed 12 points and 8 rebounds.

Ebuka Ekwegh led the Hurricanes with 12 points.

Reading Rockets made it two wins from two as they beat Essex Rebels 90-60 at the Essex Sports Arena.

The visiting Rockets got off to a quick start to establish dominance and never let their foot off the pedal, leading by as many as 32 points in a polished performance.

New Americans Jax Bouknight and Malik Bryant led Reading with 20 points, while Ty Nsangu and Cooper Creek pulled down 17 rebounds and 15 boards, respectively, as the Rockets out-rebounded their counterparts 65-45.

Miles Brown led the Rebels with 19 points.

A fourth-quarter ambush from the Worthing Thunder propelled them to a 97-88 win over a stubborn London Cavaliers side.

Leading by as many as 11 points, the Cavaliers executed well from the field and were good value for their lead against an under-performing Thunder side. That was until the fourth quarter.

Trailing 70-67 heading into the fourth, the rejuvenated Thunder needed just 13 seconds to tie the game through a triple from Jonathan Lashley, sending the home crowd into raptures as they outscored London 30-18 in the final period for the victory.

Adrian Scarborough recorded his second straight double-double of the Trophy for Worthing with 20 points and 14 rebounds, but it was Justin Hopkins who stole the show with 36 points and 7 boards.

Juan Manning was the high man for the Cavaliers with 23 points, as they look for an immediate bounce-back performance tomorrow (Sunday) at Reading.

Loughborough Riders recovered from Wednesday's loss to Nottingham Hoods by condemning the Bristol Flyers II to their third consecutive loss.

Tomide Akinsiku was the high man for the Riders as he led four players in double figures with 24 points in their 94-57 win in the south-west.

Up in Scotland, the Falkirk Fury stunned the Newcastle Knights for their second win of the week, as they won 86-80.

Jonny Bunyan, who is mixing his head coaching role with Super League Basketball side Caledonia Gladiators with his playing duty with the Fury led them with 19 points.