Brixton Topcats 62, Loughborough 57
To Brixton Rec! …on Sunday afternoon. With a slight wobble as well.
Battle weary after completing the 38-mile London Classic bicycle ride, the Rec was next up on my Garmin radar with the Brixton Topcats in quarterfinal action Loughborough.
Personal body wobbles better not transfer to the basketball court. The quarterfinal was a key moment in the season for the Topcats, keen to replicate the achievements of the Lady Topcats down at the Rec this season.
I wobbled in fashionably late. The Topcats were trailing 26-20 in the second quarter against a ‘physically robust’ Loughborough team.
The boys from the East Midlands also had safety in numbers. The Loughborough bench was double the size of the Brixton home squad. It also doubled up as the official away support, with the benched players adding plenty of atmosphere.
“Do it! DO IT!”
…came the response from the Topcats on court. I’m not sure what it was that the Brixton boys had to do. Draw in a foul from the away team?
The ref wasn’t having any of it. A ‘no dice’ approach to officialdom was observed. Backchat wasn’t tolerated; personal fouls illuminated the Rec scoreboard as the clock counted down for the end of the first half.
The final five seconds were played out in what seemed like a five-minute timeframe. Foul after foul from both teams, plus plenty of time outs as well.
It all led to the Topcats trailing 33-26 as the teams took to the ball court for the start of the third.
This was a massive moment in the season for the Topcats. Stage a brave comeback, or wobble out of contention for a trophy. The Topcats didn’t slip up during a crazy coupe of minutes at the start of the third quarter.
The Rec scoreboard showed a Brixton lead for the first time with the Topcats setting up a 39-35 stretch.
Was this the away wobble? A bad injury to a key Loughborough player didn’t help the cause. A big three pointer on the buzzer saw the Topcats take a 44-38 lead into the final quarter.
The excitement if the final passage of play may *or may not* have led me to loudly WHOOPING at The Rec.
Not for the first time either, Comrades.
I wasn’t alone with some strong home support boosting Brixton’s chances.
“You gotta make love Andy!”
…was stretching it somewhat. It wouldn’t normally be a suitable comment for the b-ball court, but it kinda made sense down at Brixton on Sunday.
There is an art to creative time wasting. Brixton has always been a creative community. The Topcats kept the ball as the clock counted down.
Loughborough put a full court press in place with only three points now the lead. Four free throw misses from the Topcats was a poor return.
Loughborough were left chasing three pointers. They started to… wobble.
62-57 was the final score, with the Topcats now through to a semi-final place.
TOP ball game.