Worcester Wolves have moved up to fourth place in the National Basketball League Division One.
They secured the spot after a dramatic 74-72 victory over Myerscough Academy in a tense clash at the University of Worcester Arena on Friday.
In a see-saw contest Wolves had to battle back from a 72-69 deficit in the final couple of minutes and were only confirmed as the victors when stalwart forward Humberto Ferreira rose up to swat away a last-gasp Myerscough attack.
Dean Blake, head coach, said: "I don’t know what to say – Myerscough are a very good team but we made that match so hard for ourselves.
"If we’d played the first 38 minutes with the same desire and effort that we played with in the last two minutes, then it wouldn’t have even been a close game.
"We’ve won the game, so that’s great, but I believe we’re a better team than we’ve shown.
"There are things we’re working towards and standards we’re trying to achieve, but today wasn’t where we have to be."
The Wolves started strong, taking a 22-17 lead after the first quarter thanks to scoring from Fin Rennie and Earl Burgess.
Harry Godwin hit two three-pointers and Emmanuel Yeboah got on the scoresheet just before half-time.
Worcester held a 40-35 interval advantage but Myerscough fought back in the third quarter.
Harry Sheehan hit his fourth triple of the night, and seven-foot centre Zach Tresvant brought the teams level with a dunk.
By the end of the third quarter, Myerscough led 60-53.
Burgess dampened the Myerscough celebrations by responding with a basket and Santhe made key defensive plays to set up scores for Yeboah and Georgios Stergiopoulos to draw the teams closer on the scoreboard.
Santhe then hit a deep three-pointer to put the Wolves ahead 62-60 with eight minutes to play.
By four minutes remaining Sheehan’s seventh triple-success from just 10 attempts had once more reversed the lead.
Daijaun Antonio made up for being dispossessed by his opponent by snatching the ball straight back and laying it home to bring up a 72-72 tie in the final minute.
Missed shots abounded and players scrambled on the floor before Burgess eventually grabbed the winning basket.
The Wolves return to action next Saturday, November 1, when they host Teesside Lions at 7.30pm.
Mr Blake said: "We’ve got our standards and we have to work towards maintaining them every week."
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