Depleted Storm fall short in Derby

Saturday’s game saw a depleted Hemel Storm roster lose comfortably away at Derby Trailblazers as they fell to a 104-73 defeat.

With a roster filled with many injuries, Storm could only field six players as players including Taylor Johnson, Matt Norman and Kai Walker missed out. However, it was Brayden Inger who led the scoring for the Storm with 19 points, shooting 46% from the field and 60% from three point range.

The first quarter saw the home side exert their dominance on Storm, with Conner Washington scoring the first eight points of the game for the Trailblazers. Whilst Storm attempted to utilise their inside presence of Darien Nelson-Henry and Brayden Inger, Jake Rothauge was forced into an early timeout after a three pointer from Jai Pathmarajah made it 17-4 to Derby. Whilst the timeout helped Storm to refocus and begin to work the ball into high percentage shooting areas, the hosts continued to shoot well from the perimeter and lead 29-16 heading into the second quarter.

Storm were able to regather and refocus themselves after a tough first period of the game. It was captain Sam Newman who was able to trim the deficit to single digits after connecting from three-point range from as many possessions. Whilst it forced Derby into a timeout, the hosts were able to extend their advantage with well-worked possessions which led to good shots being taken. The inside presence of Mo Walker alongside the three-point threat of Pathmarajah and Washington gave the Trailblazers a 51-39 lead before the interval.

Turnovers proved to be a key weakness in the third quarter for Storm as nine of their 16 came within the third quarter. It proved tough for Storm to execute on their possessions as Derby’s organised defence only conceded 10 Storm points throughout the quarter. Forcing the visitors into tough shots and remaining focused allowed for the Trailblazers to execute off turnovers, scoring 27 points of their own. Both teams headed into the final quarter with Derby leading 78-49.

Whilst the opening stages of the fourth quarter did show that Stormm would compete until the final buzzer with a dunk from Veron Eze and an and-one from Brayden Inger, the hosts continued to control the tempo of the proceedings as Storm slowly started to tire.

Derby were without their Americans but with the former British Basketball League experience of Conner Washington, Mo Walker, Rob Marsden and Raheem May-Thompson, Derby Trailblazers continued to show their accuracy from their shooting. Whilst replies from Eze and Inger came just before the final buzzer, it was Derby that emerged to a convincing 104-73 victory.

Whilst it was a difficult fixture and a disappointing defeat, the six player roster continued to compete for the entire of the game with Sam Newman being the only player to play 40 minutes. 16 turnovers in the game proved costly for the visitors as Derby were able to take advantage of Storm’s missed opportunities with points of their own. 

Storm will look to avenge this defeat next weekend as they host Bristol Flyers II on Saturday 29th November. The team will need your support to bounce back to winning ways so make sure to purchase your tickets using the Fanbase platform.

Written by Ollie Heathcote