Kent Crusaders finished the year with a comfortable 55-74 win over Nottingham Hoods in Nottingham on Saturday afternoon.

Looking to bounce back after a double-loss weekend, Crusaders pounced early, jumping out to a 26-5 lead after the opening quarter and never looked back.

Amin Adamu had 22 points on 10/13 shooting to lead Kent, whilst John Shodipo finished with 19 and brother Tim Shodipo joined them in double figures with 15 on 6/9 shooting.

“I was really pleased with the way we responded after the games last week,” said Kent Head Coach Lloyd Gardner.

“In particular in the first quarter, we really came out strong and really sealed the game in the first 10 minutes.

“Our defensive effort was excellent. I think Nottingham are a team that don’t reflect their record; they’re a dangerous team with some good players

“They they made some adjustments after the first and caused us some problems but we responded well in the second half and obviously we’re delighted to head into the Christmas break and New Near now sitting at the top of the league and having reached two semi-finals already.”

Crusaders close out the year at 9-1 at the top of the table and return to action in 2017 on January 14 against Doncaster Danum Eagles at BA Leisure Centre (2:30pm).