Basketball: One up for the Bears

WORTHING BEARS went for one-upmanship in their final Budweiser League game of the season on Saturday night with a 96-84 win over Leicester City Riders, who they now meet in the quarter- finals of the play-offs beginning later this week.

Worthing's veteran player- coach Alan Cunningham takes his team to the Granby Halls on Saturday for the first leg of the quarter-final against Riders, who until Saturday had won nine of their previous 10 games under March's coach of the month, Jerry Jenkins.

Cunningham said: 'That's the third time we've beaten Riders in the League this season and Jerry didn't want us again in the play-offs.' A Leicester victory would have produced a series against Manchester Giants, who they

defeated earlier in the season in the League.

Saturday's results confirmed the other best-of-three quarter- finals from which the four survivors qualify for Wembley Arena on 30 April and 1 May.

London Towers won 98-83 at Doncaster Panthers to finish fifth and will play fourth-placed Guildford Kings. London's win left Birmingham Bullets in sixth, and they now play third- placed Manchester. Eighth- placed Derby had already drawn the short straw, the series against the champions, Thames Valley Tigers, leaving the runners-up Worthing to face seventh-placed Leicester.