Northants beat the Raptors earlier in the season and the Raptors and were sure to provide a stiff test. The Thnuder jumped out to an early lead as the Raptors showed side effects from the four hour drive. But soon the Raptors got into their stride behind 5 first half three pointers from Steven Gayle. Papis Samb also had a great first half and the Raptors led 43-36 at half time.
The Thunder responded in the third quarter with a huge run of points that swung the game in their favour as the Raptors struggled to deal with the strength and athleticism of the Thunder forwards who dominated the game around the basket. The Raptors trailed by 10 heading into the fourth quarter.
To their credit the Raptors responded and pulled the game level, and took the lead with an impressive 13-0 run, but the Thunder fought back as they again went to the inside game. As the Raptors fouled the Thunder made their free throw attempts. As the Thunder players piled defensive pressure on Gayle the Raptors failed to convert their opportunities and went scoreless for the final 3 minutes handing the Thunder a 77-71 lead and top spot in Division 3.
The Raptors still control their own destiny and can secure promotion to division 2 if they manage to win their remaining 6 games.
The next step is at home to Nottingham on Saturday, tip off 5:15 at Haslingden Sports Centre.
Coach Ken Masser commented after the game: “It just wasn’t our day today. Northants played very well and were well coached. We weren’t at our best, we struggled to make shots at crunch time and Northants were good value for the winner. We need to play better as a team, and play with more confidence. If we can do that I’m sure we’ll bounce back on Saturday.”
“The few positives from today were the excellent debut of Mark Rangeley who played extremely well and brought a lot of energy to the team. Plus, Steven Gayle seems to be finding his shooting touch again which will be good news moving into the last third of the season.”