HEAD coach Ty Shaw has demanded “intensity” and “passion” from his players ahead of Worcester Wolves’ double-header against table-toppers London Lions.

Worcester tackle Lions in the British Basketball League at the University of Worcester Arena on Friday (7.30pm) before travelling to the Copper Box Arena to face the leaders in the quarter-finals of the BBL Cup on Sunday (4pm).

The two sides sit at opposite ends of the table with Wolves rock bottom after a run of eight straight league defeats.

But having beaten London City Royals in the previous round of the cup and run second-placed Newcastle Eagles close in a 97-89 away defeat Shaw reckons Worcester can test Lions.

“I want us to bring intensity, passion and that willingness to compete that we have shown over the past 80 minutes of basketball,” Shaw said.

“I always love playing at home and in front of the fans.

“We just really want to show that we are continuing to build and we are working hard in the gym.

“You always get up for games like these.

“It’s good to measure yourself against the teams that are at the top.

"The last couple of games have given us a good test and these matches against London on Friday and Sunday will be another two.”

Wolves have also had the experience of visiting Lions this season as they went down 82-65 in September.

“You can glean what you want from film but having the advantage of seeing them in person means that we have heard some of their plays and they have heard some of ours, so it does and doesn’t help,” Shaw said.

“This will be another great challenge for us.

“The last time we went down there our offensive rebounds and turnovers were a big issue.

“If we can clean up some of those things we will put ourselves in a good position and if we can bring that mental and physical toughness we can make that a competitive game.

“I am pretty excited about the way we have played in the past two weeks but we have got to bring that same competitiveness.”

Terrel Martin-Garcia has recently comeback from a lower leg injury but was forced to sit out Wolves’ clash with Newcastle.

And there are doubts over whether the forward will be fit in time to take on Lions in both games this weekend.

“He is just dealing with the bumps and bruises that come along in a season,” Shaw added. “Sometimes these double headers are tough on players.

“Players around the league have missed back-to-back games, it is just part of the grind in a long season.

“He has been good in training so we will have to see on game-day.

“Every team is dealing with sickness and injuries, so it is just about managing those things.”