Stealers were first on the scoreboard with an early lay up and made three pointer. Robin Boult got Tigers started with two made free throws, followed shortly by a well-executed fast break and layup finish from their captain.

Both teams seemed tight early on with lots of scrappy mistakes leading to turnovers. Whilst Oxford hit several mid range jump shots, a three pointer from Joe Andrews and layup from Ed Surtees kept Tigers within striking distance 13 – 11.

In the second quarter Tigers continued to make mistakes, turning the ball over but started to take advantage inside on offense with Mark Schroeder scoring 8. Jack Roberts and Joe Andrews both chipped in with 4 points each in the period. Oxford shot the ball well making three 3 pointers but found themselves trailing at half time 30 – 35.

The third and fourth quarter failed to produce much high quality basketball but it was early in the second half that Tigers started to assert their dominance inside. Oxford changed to a zone defence but some good ball movement offensively led to easy baskets for Tigers.

Roberts, Schroeder and Boult used their height and strength inside to good effect. Stealers continued to shoot well from outside but Tigers answered with three pointers of their own from Andrews and Surtees. Young guard, Tim Gumbs played well throughout, handling the ball on offense and contributing 6 points.

In the end Taunton were able to grind out a win with the final score 62 – 75. Despite some sloppy play, Coach Richard Anderson was pleased with the result,

Everyone made a positive contribution to the game and it’s great to win our first league game, especially on the road. We will work on the mistakes and come back even stronger next week!

Both Tiger’s junior teams (U16s & U18s) also had fixtures, travelling to Bristol Storm and coming away with wins.

Taunton Tigers Men’s next league match is next Saturday, 7th October when they host Oxford City Hoops at Richard Huish College, 6pm tip-off. Spectator’s welcome!