Leicester Warriors v Worthing Thunder preview

by UK American Sports Fans

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This Sunday will see Worthing Thunder travel to the East Midlands for a clash with the Leicester Warriors as the two teams meet for the first time this season. On paper, the Warriors team looks quite badly depleted from last season as their trio of star guards: Mindaugas Janiska, Stephen Danso and Rishi Kakad, have moved on. However, the home side have managed to assemble a strong side which will certainly be an excellent test for the Thunder.

Key players who are returning for the Warriors include two ex-Leicester Riders: 6’8” Emile Hopkins and point guard Carl Pearson. These two run as the long-serving backbone to the team, and the athleticism of Hopkins in particular should provide some tough match-ups for Worthing. Pearson’s strong start to the season was capped last week with an impressive tally of 10 assists against Tees Valley Mohawks. Another returnee that Thunder will need to watch out for is youthful Elliott Sentence.

The Warriors primary offensive threat, however, is new signing Paris Carter. The 6’4” American comes straight out of Canada’s Cape Breton University with a penchant for knocking down threes. His scoring arsenal will make him tough to guard for any of Thunder’s players. And their second American, 6’3” former NEWI Nets guard, DaWaun Wells, will be a handful too.

It should be a good day for Worthing, as finally the whole line-up should be available for selection. New point guard Vinnie Darpino has steadied the ship well and proved that he is a valuable clutch scorer, hitting a last-second-three to win last weekend’s game with Westminster. Athletic big Marcus Tullis is coming into form after a couple of excellent performances and should feature again in the top-scorers. Courtney Small has the tough match-up with Warriors’ star man Carter, but his athleticism and quickness should give him the upper hand. American guard Chris Talley is due a good shooting performance, and if he plays well it could be the difference for the Thunder.

Thunder need to exploit the Warriors lack of size and muscle inside. If power-house Frankie Amato is fully fit he will be tough for Leicester’s players to deal with, especially with the explosive duo of Tullis and Small hanging around.