Hornets: 62
Preston: 87
Hornets pull back a 12 point deficit in Q2 to finish Q3 all level only then to let the game go completely in Q4.
Hornets welcomed back Jon Print for only his third game of the season after an horrific ankle injury in the first round of the cup. But even Jon’s influence was not enough to stop high flying Preston.
Q1 saw Preston scoring freely and opening up an early 11 point lead as Hornets couldn’t penetrate the Preston Zone defence. Jump shots from Sam Barnard and Guy Johnson were the only scores for the Hornets in the first 5 minutes. A time out changed the focus of the attack and this combined with a much tighter defence to get the Hornets back into the match. Steve Arnold and Jon Print scored well worked baskets and Barney had great success against a smaller defender, scoring 8 points in the last two minutes to leave the Hornets trailing by 4.
Hornets again started slow in Q2 not scoring for 4 minutes until Guy landed a jump shot and Tom Lee got his shooting range. Sam Bithell landed a superb 3 pointer but Preston had stretched the lead to 6 points. Hornets sprang from the traps in Q3 Jon and Guy landing early points and three 3 pointers in a row from Tom cut the deficit to only two points as a massive effort was thrown in from everyone to stop the Preston offence. Sam, Steve and Danny Wareham all added points to bring the game to all even going into the last quarter.
Tiredness now showed for the Hornets, physically and mentally as The Pride went on the prowl and put in an unanswered 17 points to effectively kill off the game. Gaps were found in the Hornet defence and nothing dropped in on the offence. Hornets looked ragged, snatching at early shots and being punished on the break. Guy, Jon and Barney were the only scorers as the Hornets lost the quarter by 25 points, leaving Preston secure in their play off place.
Top Scorer – Barney 15 Points
Played Out of their skin - Guy, total effort on both boards
Best Basket - Barney isolated in the low post, spins and drops a banked jump shot – Absolutely unstoppable
Must Improve. Shot selection under pressure. Defence against players with one dribbling hand.
