Let’s see some early wraps, says Flournoy

Mar 6 2009 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal

FABULOUS Flournoy hopes to use his Newcastle Eagles bench to its maximum in the coming week – but he wants his players’ help.

The Eagles entertain Worthing Thunder tonight in the first of four games in 10 days, culminating in the Trophy Final against Guildford Heat. But they cannot afford to take even the South Coast strugglers lightly while they remain locked in a very tight British Basketball League title race.

Player-coach Flournoy’s solution sounds simple, but has been beyond his players for most of the campaign: win early. “You can’t take any nights off,” the American warned. “We want to win the Trophy after losing to Guildford in the final last year. But we can’t concentrate too much on it. The one thing we have to do is close out games.

“If we can close the game out early, I can run the bench. I’m going to make sure we get a healthy rotation in the next few games.”

Fortunately for Flournoy, he feels better equipped to do that than at any time during his trophy-littered coaching career on Tyneside. It is why he is relaxed about being without last season’s BBL Player of the Year.