It's been another thrilling weekend in D1M, with a quality game for our NBL live stream to boot. There were big wins for leaders Solent, plus Thames Valley, Leicester, Nottingham, Worthing and Reading, here's our recap of week 11.
Despite facing one of their toughest tests to date, Solent remain unbeaten following a 79-74 home win over Hemel. The game was exciting throughout with the NBL cameras catching all the action.
With the Kestrels moving out to a 48-34 lead by the half, even the neutral fan would have feared the worst for Hemel's chance of getting something from the contest.
The Storm dug deep though, led by 23 points from Mike Williams, eventually pulling the Solent advantage down to just three points late in the 4th. That's as close as Hemel would get though as the hosts eventually secured the win.
Elliott Sentance top scored for Solent with 22 points, adding 8 rebounds. Brendan Okoronkwo had 17 more and Travis Charles was the only other Kestrel who made it to double digits scoring, he had 11.
You can re-watch the game in full using the button at the bottom of this page.
A loss for Hemel provided an opportunity for Worthing Thunder to assume sole possession of 2nd place, and they did just that with an entertaining 106-101 victory over Liverpool. Despite their recent struggles, Liverpool refused to go quietly despite trailing 87-71 going into the last.
With a little over two minutes remaining, Reiss Haggith hit a jumper to pull the deficit back to just two at 99-97 though that was the wake up call Worthing needed to regain their composure, and ultimately, claim an important win. Alex Owumi top scored with 36 points for Worthing, and Kaphel Ulett-Waul had 25 for Liverpool.
Thames Valley bounced back from a loss last weekend with a 95-80 win on the road in Loughborough. The Cavs were able to keep a lid on Harrison Gamble, who finished with a 12 point, 12 rebound double-double, as Thames Valley's Blayne Freckleton finished with a game high 24 points.
Another team regaining their form were Reading, who beat Bradford Dragons 78-78 after a disappointing outing in week 10. Bradford managed to pull within a point as 72 seconds remained on the clock, but despite multiple looks for both teams, no further scoring would take place until Reading's Nick Richards iced the game from the line. The late free throws would cap a 21 point performance from Richards, who played all 40 minutes. David Walsh top scored for the Dragons with 22 points.
In another close finish, Nottingham Hoods managed to outlast Essex & Herts Leopards to record an 85-80 win. Demetrius Houston had 27 points for the Hoods as Essex failed to make full use of winning the rebound battle 57-35. Hafeez Abdul led the way for the Leopards on offence, finishing with 23 points.
Finally, Lamin Willan scored 14 points and T.J. Henderson added 12 more as Leicester Warriors beat Westminster 81-67. The victory moves Leicester to 5-6 on the year and into the 8th and final playoff position. Afrasyab Khalil top scored for Westminster with 18 points.
4:30pm - Leicester Warriors 81-67 Westminster Warriors
5:00pm - Loughborough Riders 80-95 Thames Valley Cavaliers - LIVE STATS
6:00pm - Team Solent Kestrels 79-74 Hemel Storm - LIVE STATS
6:30pm - Nottingham Hoods 85-80 Essex & Herts Leopards - LIVE STATS
4:00pm - Worthing Thunder 106-101 Liverpool - LIVE STATS
5:00pm - Reading Rockets 78-75 Bradford Dragons - LIVE STATS
Six games populate week 12, the penultimate weekend before the mid-season break.
Worthing Thunder host Reading Rockets in what shout be a great contest, with Leicester Warriors welcoming Hemel Storm and Westminster Warriors heading to Thames Valley.
Leaders Team Solent Kestrels will try and remain undefeated as they go up against Nottingham Hoods, Liverpool travel to Loughborough to face the Riders and Bradford make the trip to Derby.
Main image credit - Luke Simcock
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