WORCESTER Wolves clinched promotion to National Division One with a narrow 95-87 play-off win over North West London Wolverines.

More than 200 of Wolves' loyal fans made the trip to Birmingham's NIA on Saturday to see them secure the English Basketball League's Division Two play-off.

The game was close, with little to separate the teams in what proved a roller-coaster affair.

Both had already won one competition this season. The Patron's Cup went to Worcester, while the league title went to the Wolverines.

North West London had reached the same final last season, only to be beaten 80-65 by Derbyshire Arrows.

The first quarter set the trend for the rest of the game with close marking by both sides, tight scoring and strong rebounding. Ty Shaw put in an invaluable performance scoring nine of the Wolves total 20 points in the first quarter.

However, NWL kept the scoring gap tight, and Wolves led by just 20-19 at the end of the quarter.

Keith Jarrett joined the game in the second quarter and began to make his mark on the score sheet with six points and several rebounds. Both teams maintained the pressure throughout, with two three pointers from Jerome Jack of NWL near the end of the quarter. NWL led 45-44 at half-time.

After a short delay for repairs to padding around one of the backboards, the third quarter opened with two baskets for Worcester from Josh Cooprider. Shaw and Jarrett continued to work well together, making inroads to the basket and the quarter ended with Worcester still narrowly ahead 72-68.

The final quarter was more frantic than ever. Coach Jim Smith ran Cooprider, Jarrett, Wayne Robinson, Shaw and Rick Solvason throughout the period. With two-and-a-quarter minutes to go, NWL led 84-83. However, Cooprider responded with a three pointer, to retake the lead.

Four desperate fouls from NWL accelerated their demise, and Worcester broke away, riding on a wall of noise from the crowd. The game ended 95-87 to Worcester, a fitting end to an excellent season.

North West London played a very physical game and kept their marking tight throughout. The officials apparently overlooked a significant number of contact incidents.

Shaw, who played for the whole 40 minutes, fully deserved his Most Valuable Player Award. He scored 30 points, took 12 rebounds, made four assists, two steals and one block.

After the game Wolves' Director of Basketball Mick Donovan said: "It was an excellent end to a successful season. Our fighting spirit reflects a new aspect to our game that we have developed this season. Our appearance here underlines the fact that we have now arrived as a force in English basketball."

Play-off success means Wolves will move up to take on the likes of Plymouth Raiders, Worthing Thunder and Manchester Magic.

Wolves Scorers: Shaw 30, Jarrett 23, Cooprider 18, Solvason 11. Wolves Rebounders: Shaw 12, Jarrett 9, Robinson/Chiverton 4.