WILDCATS GO EIGHT STRAIGHT WITH TOUGH WIN OVER MANSFIELD

Durham Wildcats came through a searching examination by Mansfield Giants, at Newton Aycliffe on Saturday evening, to preserve their unbeaten start to the season, and stay joint top of the early EBL Division 2 table.

Durham Wildcats       (23, 34, 61) 86             Mansfield Giants      (10, 31, 54) 75

Durham began brightly, with a 7-0 start, including a “3” from Scott Morton, and followed that with a 10-2 spurt (Morton adding another “trey”, and Mark Elderkin also connecting from distance that put them 17-4 ahead.
Player/coach Dan Richards hit back with a “3”, only for the home side to score the next two baskets, and with all five starters having contributed points the Wildcats were good value for their 13 point lead at the first break.
The visitors increased their defensive intensity on the restart, and though Durham scored first, to lead 25-10, seven unanswered points by the Giants hauled them back into contention, and, with Michal Ciesla beginning to find space, Mansfield had pulled right back to 32-29 going into the final minute.
The home side held on to take a 3 point cushion into the locker room at the half, but their comfort zone had disappeared, with only Michael Davies (with 6 of the Wildcats’ 11 points in the quarter) making an impact at the offensive end.
The Wildcats continued to struggle against Mansfield’s physical pressure in the third quarter, as the visitors levelled the game at 39, but a Paul Elderkin “3” prevented the visitors from getting their noses in front.
With the Giants’ defence concentrating on keeping the Durham shooters from getting time and space, Wales international Anthony Trigg began to take advantage of the room that opened up under the basket. As his team-mates found him with fast and accurate passes Trigg racked up a steady flow of points, to keep the Wildcats ahead, despite eight points from Ciesla.
When the Wildcats scored the final five points of the third period they gave themselves a crucial seven point advantage to take into the final stanza.
Mansfield continued to threaten, with Ciesla hitting 13 of their next 16 points, but the Wildcats held on, with two “3”s from Morton and one by Tolis Apostolidis helping them to stay ahead, 77-70, approaching the final two minutes.
Maintaining their defensive pressure was paying dividends for Durham, but it was also resulting in a mounting foul count, but, despite having three players on four fouls, they kept their nerve, and their composure, down the stretch, to eke out an eleven point victory.
Scott Morton led the Wildcats’ scoring with 24 points (13 in the final quarter), with Anthony Trigg adding seventeen. Michal Ciesla led all scorers with 32.
“That was a tough game” commented coach Dave Elderkin. “We began well, playing good defence, which brought the usual dividends on offence, but we lost our way a little bit in the second quarter.
“We showed good character under pressure in the third quarter, and once again the bench players made a significant contribution. I was particularly pleased for Anthony Trigg; he always works hard and it’s good to see that bearing fruit.
“We’ll continue to draw lessons from each game, and work on cutting down on errors, but we’re pleased with the club’s best-ever start to a season, especially as we’ve just stepped up a division.”     

It’s another big weekend for the Wildcats next week, as they visit Birmingham As in the league on Saturday and then make the shorter journey to Newcastle on Sunday, to face old rivals Team Northumbria in the National Cup.