If Thunder are going to beat Glasgow Rocks on Sunday...

Worthing Thunder take on the Glasgow Rocks on Saturday in a BBL championship game.

Rocks have had a decent start to the season going 4-3, compared to Worthing's record of 1-3 so far. I think it's important to remember, though, that their four wins have all been against four of the weaker teams in the BBL, including a tight contest with Essex Pirates.

In short, Rocks are a decent team, but they are far from unbeatable.

The obvious dangerman is EJ Harrison the veteran guard who joined the Rocks from MK Lions. He's averaging 15 ppg and 4 apg, so not what you can call fantastic numbers, especially on a team that isn't exactly stacked with offensive talent.
6'8'' forward/centre Mike Copeland is the inside threat. He's averaging 18 ppg. 6'6'' American/Greek Nick Livas has been the other main offense player, he has added 15 ppg.
Rocks other main players are 6'4'' French swingman Moses Mubarak, 6'3'' American guard Brice Fantazia, and naturalised player/coach Sterling Davis. They have also just added Australian big-man Michael Kingma who counts as a non-permit player due to the virtue of a Dutch passport.

So what do Thunder need to do if they want to beat Glasgow?

I think the best bet is going inside early. Get it to Nottley and Durant down low and let them go to work, and get Adam Williams and Mansour Mbye to drive in. I say this because Kingma is new to the team and so will not yet be completely comfortable with the defensive plays. Copeland is certainly talented and may well be the best big-man in the match, but he is also highly prone to foul trouble. 6'6'' Sterling Davis is a fantastic player, I remember him from his days as the Bears, but he is a little underized to guard Nottley, and probably doesn't have the athleticism any more to guard Durant.

If Prezzie-Blue is in the Worthing line-up it will improve us both defensively and offensively. But whoever is guarding EJ Harrison needs to keep him in check. Harrison can really put up a lot of points very quickly, and was the catalyst in the Rocks pulling away from Essex Pirates in the fourth quarter last week. Brice Fantazia, on the other hand, shouldn't be too much of an offensive threat and we can let him have his points.

The signing of Kingma could actually work to Worthing's advantage. It's not a big surprise to find that when Sterling Davis plays more minutes, Rocks have a better record. Kingma will take minutes away from Davis, and currently I don't think he will give Thunder as much to worry about.

Adam Williams needs to play big minutes again, he is crucial to our success. Nottley and Durant need to pound the ball inside. Marlin Capers should use his veteran savvy to outmanuevere the less experienced Mubrak and Livas. And a mature performance from Mbye could be the difference for Thunder.