One point, two points or thirty points – nothing dulls the sting of a season coming to an abrupt end.
“That moment sticks,” said Cian Hickey of the Spinners’ lopsided 91-61 defeat to Derby in the quarterfinals of the playoffs, now, over a week ago. “Throughout the offseason and especially in the preseason it’s going to be there as motivation; you don’t want to feel like that again.”
Yes, the on-court performances fluctuated for a completely revamped roster that overcame replacing four starters from the 2014-15 team that won 29 games. But Lancashire was plucky, no doubt, and revealed several positive takeaways in its inaugural campaign in the National Basketball League’s Division One, which bodes well for the future.
On six occasions the Spinners had winning streaks of at least three games with the longest reaching five victories between Oct. 25 and Nov. 14 – though it was followed by the team’s only three game losing streak.
Overall, Lancashire was 2-1 when coming off of consecutive defeats and 14-8 on double-header weekends.
But most notably at the forefront of a continued rapid ascension, the club has created an attractive and sustainable foundation that will help recruit high-calibre players through the doors.
“It’s important we continue to solidify the club and put the right people in place,” said Spinners head coach Neal Hopkins, who guided the team to a 25-13 record in his first year. “We already have an outstanding infrastructure and formalising a partnership with the Academy at Myerscough is as crucial as getting the right senior players, who are willing to commit to building the club further, on board.”
During the season, Lancashire fielded five players – Kyle Carey, Alex Roberts, George Darling, Zion Tordoff and Hickey – from Myerscough and will likely lose three of its youth core to the United States and NCAA schools.
The teenage quintet, who dazzled a growing fan base in Bury with dunks and big shots, combined to make 54 starts. Hickey started in 72 percent of the Spinners’ games and Kyle Carey was the team’s fourth leading scorer in league play averaging just over 11 points with 4.2 rebounds.
Though the Spinners will have an experienced pool to draw from to replenish any losses because of their association with Myerscough.
“We will certainly have to be proactive in our recruitment,” Hopkins said. “We will lose a number of our youth, but I am excited to bring the next group [of younger players] in alongside important pieces from this season.”
Allen Gunn
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