Rusty Marjon hit back to give Wolves a big fright
PLYMOUTH Marjon suffered heartbreak losing 82-80 with just seconds to go in their Division Three South clash with Worcester Wolves.
Marjon, showing severe ring-rust after three weeks of celebrating Christmas, went 26 behind in the first two quarters.
But a second half resurgence saw the Plymouth team battle back to within a few points of their opponents at Tor Bridge High School.
They could have beaten the BBL outfit's second string had not a last-second attempt at shooting three points come to grief.
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"That would have won the game, but the ball just rattled out," said a rueful Marjon head coach Matt Hatchell.
"When we went 26 points behind, I thought it was going to be one of those games which we were going to have to write off and forget about.
"We had the three weeks off and we were unable to train because everything was shut.
"We got back to training last Tuesday and watching them, I knew it might be a bit of a struggle. We were very rusty.
"But the team fought back well from being 26 points down in the first 15 minutes, when we couldn't buy a basket. We stepped it up in defence and we just went on the rampage.
"But at the end, we couldn't quite do it."
New signing and guard Scott Gordon, who has returned to Plymouth after a brief flirtation with BBL basketball, looked like he might be a good acquisition for Marjon, said Hatchell.
He said: "Steve went up to university in Sheffield and ended up with the BBL club up there, but it didn't work out.
"We're glad to have him back with Plymouth and once he's got a few games under his belt, he's going to be a real asset to the team."
Shane Hennessey, despite suffering from a tight hamstring, top-scored for Plymouth, nailing 20 points.
Jamie Davies added a further 18 and Mark Gillbard weighed in with 17 points.
The previous day, Marjon had toughed out a gritty 74-70 over Solent, also at home.
Hatchell said that he expected exactly what he got from Solent – an enthusiastic and young team who would not give up.
Hatchell said: "Solent are very young and organised and very up for it.
"It was a close game all the way, but we just kept playing and did enough to win."
Hatchell believes the division is still wide open.
He said: "On their day, everybody can beat everybody else. The league's not going to be decided early."
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