Huddersfield Heat launched their English Basketball League Division II campaign with an 89-71 victory at Loughborough Student Riders.
It was a strong opening display from Huddersfield who took the initiative early, coming out on top of the first quarter with a comfortable 13-point lead at 26-13.
Loughborough tried to recover their composure, but Heat’s strong first quarter built a solid foundation, not allowing the hosts to move any closer to the visitors at half time (48-32).
The Heat’s advantage was extended even further in the third quarter as they added another 13 points to their lead to make it 61-36, while Loughborough struggled to convert any of their chances. However, the home-side rallied and thanks to a strong display from Reiss Haggith they managed to close the gap to 20 points at the end of the third.
The final quarter was even, but the hosts – with the help of some long-range shooting from William Maynard – managed to close the gap slightly by the end.
Miguel Molina led all scorers with 24 points for the Heat, including four threes, while Haggith was the leading scorer for the losing side with 23 points.
The Spanish duo of Julio Sosa and Orlando Camin combined for a further 31 of the Heat’s 89 points, while forward Nick Crowder collected a further 10.
Coach Eduardo Perez commented: “Very pleased with another excellent win, that keeps our run going.
“We are still very much a work in progress, but every week we are getting steadily better, and the guys are learning from each other how we can best fit together. There have been some very encouraging signs so far, in particular on the defensive end. When we get that fluidity on offence, and in particular, look after the ball a little better, I think we will be a very efficient team.”
