Essex Rebels fall short to BA London Lions on their return to the 20/21 Season
By Ross Norfolk, Head Coach, Essex Rebels NBL Division 1.
Both teams had only played one game in the league before this match up and that was back in November 2020. After the 2 month break due to Covid restrictions, it was nice to reignite the campaign.
Before heading into the game, Essex were light on the ground with only 7 players available to suit up whilst Barking had their full squad.
The game started with great intensity with both teams trading baskets. Despite the limited minutes on court the first quarter did not show any rust, with the score line at 32 – 28 to Barking.
Flowing into the 2nd quarter, Essex needed to keep up with the fast pace of Barking and this is where the game started to slip away from the visitors. Going into halftime Essex were down 14 points, 44 – 60.
Essex began the 2nd half well, getting to the free throw line and running some good actions offensively. Barking’s pace in transition continued to hurt Essex and concentration levels of the visitors began to dwindle.
The final stanza came around and it was damage limitation for Essex. The Rebels continued to focus on small aspects of the game but allowed Barking to continue scoring at will. The game was always going to be a tough 40 minutes with only 7 players to rotate through.
The final score saw Barking win 118 – 72. Joshua Moore led the scoring with a 22-point haul to put in a strong performance, albeit in defeat.
Head Coach Ross Norfolk, said “We started the game really well, making shots from the outside and getting to the free throw line. Barking’s pace in transition didn’t let up all game and with our small line-up it was tough to continue at the intensity needed for Division 1.”
Essex look to next weekend where they host Oaklands Wolves at the Essex Sport Arena. Barking make the trip to Solent.