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NBL Review: Shambles as Kingston down to three       Weekly Round-Up NBL Conference: Kingston 60 Teesside 131   Third placed Kingston Wildcats were expected to provide TVL Mohawks with a stern test when the two sides met in a conference league fixture at the Tolworth Recreation Centre in Surrey on Saturday night. But far from looking serious challengers for honours, Wildcats instead brought the game into disrepute with a shameful performance that will surely come under scrutiny from the sport’s governing body, England Basketball. In possibly one of the most remarkable displays seen on a British basketball court, eight-man Kingston ended the game with just three players on the floor after first Jamie Whitaker, followed by player/coach Solomon Ayinla were ejected and, apparently under the dismissed coach’s direct orders, another three players also found themselves out of the game after picking up five fouls. Whitaker, who was playing only his second game for Wildcats after switching from near neighbours Sutton Pumas, was the first to go after picking up two technical fouls in less than 60 seconds in the seventh minute of the second quarter.   The first came after disagreeing with the referee’s decision that he had fouled Carl Miller.  In a show of dissent the South African slammed the ball to the ground for his first.  But not content with one technical, Whitaker made his way down court still contesting the decision to such a point that the referee had no option but to send him to the dressing room. Seven minutes later the game took a nasty twist when Ayinla appeared to land a sickening, deliberate blow to Ralph Bucci’s face with an elbow.  The referee bizarrely called against Bucci, causing fury on Mohawks’ bench before he accepted a mistake and hit the Kingston coach with a foul. Still not finished, Ayinla followed up by launching the ball at Bucci’s face right under the referee’s nose but stubbornly refused to walk and held up the game for more than five minutes while he argued his point after being served a disqualifying foul.  It was only when a warning was issued that if he did not leave the court within two minutes the game would be called off that he finally made his exit. To cap the sorry episode, Ayinla reportedly issued a direct order to his players to foul out to leave Mohawks out on court on their own.   Andy Powlesland was next to join the exodus in the first minute of the fourth quarter.  Mark Bottiglia joined him 5 minutes later, followed by Anton Fraser in the final 40 seconds of the game. While all this was going on, the game of basketball was being badly neglected by Wildcats, who picked up a staggering 18 fouls in the final quarter alone amid tactics more appropriate for the wrestling ring.  Mohawks went to the free throw line no less than 31 times, from where they missed just eight. Mohawks’ head coach Tony Hanson praised his players for avoiding getting involved in the farce.  “Our boys were exemplary out there in the face of an intimidating game.  I think they all showed real character by concerning themselves only with our own game plan rather than getting involved in any of the things that were going on and which might have diverted our attention from it.” James Nicholson, who took over the starting point guard position in the absence of captain Jason Swaine, got the scoring underway when sinking two free throws after being fouled by Mark Vear almost immediately from the tip off.   Remarkably, and deserving of praise, this was Vear’s only indiscretion of the game as he refused to follow the instruction to foul out. A 6 point rally by Bucci and EJ Harrison gave Mohawks an early breathing space, only for the home side to hit back and level at 10-10 after five minutes.   But Hanson’s side pulled away with a 22-4 run built on a cracking defence, where seemingly every rebound was picked up and quickly converted into points at the other end while there were numerous steals and interceptions to savour.   Captain-for-the-day, Steve Butler, put down two consecutive threes in the sequence, which helped him to notch 19 personal points – a figure bettered only by Bucci, who picked up 26. Another string of 13 points without reply saw Hanson’s side already with 51 points on the board and still more than two minutes to go in quarter two.  And with a further 10 points added by Nicholson, Lijah Perkins and Carl Millers’ only two points of the game - both from the free throw line – it was all too easy for Mohawks’, who started the second half 61-29 ahead. If the Wildcats thought they were under the cosh in the first half, they were in for a shock in the second.   After a basket straight from the tip off by Harrison was cancelled out by a three from Ayinla – his last points before being dismissed – the home side failed to get through Mohawks’ defence for more than 6 minutes, while at the other end their own basket was bombarded with 22, Bucci (9 pts) and Steve Pilkington (8) being particularly productive. Coach Hanson admitted after the game that he did not have the heart to send out his big guns for the fourth quarter – an act that possibly saved Kingston from a new record mauling. Instead he played Steve Butler, Eric Milambo, Efuama Zambo, Jon Stonebridge and Steve Pilkington for the full 10 minutes.  And they really did not disappoint, racking up 36 points between them, including 23 from the bonus line, against Wildcats’ 23. The home side would be thankful in the end that all 15 points from the fifth minute to the final buzzer came from three point range through the only three players left in the game – the impressive Mark Vear, Afolabi Adokoya and Anthony Linton.   Plymouth 109 Solent 100    A phenomenal 45 point tally in the third quarter by Plymouth Raiders on their home court saw them to a 109-100 victory despite a plucky performance  from the Solent Stars.   The largest Plymouth attendance of the season (1,030) was silent at the start of the game as Solent with early points from Mark and Howard Jackson and Anthony Rutter built an early lead and denied any points to the home team for three minutes.   Plymouth then came back  and in the next three minutes had established a 9 - 14 point lead.   Solent then took over the scoring to add 15 without reply,  Mark Jackson with nine of the points gaining the scoring honours.  At the end of the first quarter Solent looked comfortably placed with a 24 -  16 lead.   Coach Mark Scott felt forced to call an early time out in the second quarter and soon Solent enjoyed their biggest lead of the game (33 - 18) in the third minute.   Even at the start of the last minute of the half Solent were still eight points in the clear despite a determined Plymouth rally that had brought them to within four points earlier (35 - 31) with coach Scott unable to intervene with a further  time-out.  A Mark Vingoe foul gifted Plymouth two points with two seconds remaining of the half and Howard Jackson made a horrible mess of putting the ball in and Plymouth accepted two more points to narrow the gap to four points at the interval.   Plymouth opened the third quarter strongly to level the scores (46 - 46) in the first minute.  Solent rallied when David Butterworth - playing with strapped fingers, having dislocated two of them at training on Friday - added a three pointer to his tally.  However, once Howard Jackson had put Solent ahead 51 - 50 in the third minute, Plymouth took over the game.   In the next five minutes they went to a 61 - 76 lead with only Howard Jackson able to respond for Solent in that period.   Plymouth's scoring continued unabated despite a time-out from coach Scott in the fifth minute.   Although Solent scored a normally respectable 22 points in the quarter it was not enough as Plymouth, deafeningly inspired by the large crowd, piled on the  points.   Despite the battering, Solent came back strongly in the last quarter.  Butterworth fouled out in the second minute and he was followed by a disappointing Dominique Jones five minutes later.  Solent made inroads on the Plymouth lead and a three pointer from Anthony Rutter - enjoying his best game of the season - brought them to within 12 points (92 - 104) with two minutes remaining.  Coach  Scott was asking for more three point success but with Jones and Butterworth having fouled out the options were limited.  A determined final press brought Solent to 100 points and no disgrace in defeat to the current league leaders.     Click here to discuss this story

 

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