KESTRELS KEEP PACE AT THE TOP OF NBL DIVISION 1 AFTER STRONG WIN IN THE CAPITAL

Image Courtesy of Dan Crowther

Saturday evening saw a strong team performance from the Solent Kestrels to clinch an 89-71 win over London Lions II, to move them to a 10-2 record in NBL Division One. The game begun with an Ash Briggs close range finish and would be the theme of the match, with the home side giving up 62 points in the paint across all four quarters.

Jakub Ofman made his way into the starting lineup with the absence of Greg Durand and made best use of the opportunity with four early points. The injection of youthful energy next to the experienced starters grew an early 10-1 lead for the Southampton-based side and the starters continued their strong start before a deserved rest. A fresh five entered the fray and a three-point shootout instantly kicked off with Elijah Lotriet showing his range, quickly followed suit by Andre Arissol and Luke Busumbru. A confident ending to the opening period meant the Kestrels went into the first pause with a 28-10 lead.

The Kestrels’ lead may have been comfortable but that didn’t stop the offensive energy from the starters, specifically, Arissol who continued his fine form on the floor and helped grow the lead to 41-18. That didn’t stop the Lions roaring back with a response, capitalising on sloppy turnovers and making their shots at the foul line count towards the end of the half, swinging the momentum in their favour.

Early rotation by the London coaching staff triggered another short run, capitalising on another wave of Kestrels turnovers, stunting the growth of the Kestrels lead. With the score at 59-46, Arissol re-invigorated the Kestrels offense once again with a 2-point mid-range effort and followed with an energetic dunk by Javen Osei-Owusu who is beginning to cement his place on the senior stage at just 17 years old.

The final quarter and both teams went scoreless for almost a minute, until Ofman added to his impressive points total of 14, but both teams remained tentative at the beginning of the final stanza. Throughout the period, neither team could maintain a rhythm offensively, but Kestrels remained firmly in front until the very end, coming out on top. Arissol put in an impressive 18 points on 70% shooting to go along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists, helping move them to 2^nd  in the NBL Division One Pool B after results elsewhere. Luke Busumbru flirted with a triple double as he had 15 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds, whilst Wayne Kitenge added 10 points off the bench.

Box score - FIBA LiveStats

The Kestrels head back to London this coming weekend as they face Richmond Knights on Saturday evening, before they return back to home soil against London Stars on the 14^th of February, game tickets can be purchased here – D1 Men vs. London Stars - NBL Division 1 Men | Team Solent Kestrels