Wolves roared back into form while Jets were grounded in an exciting finish to the Isle of Man Basketball Association regular season last week.

Wolves have struggled with a string of unexpected defeats in recent weeks, while Jets have been flying on an 11-win streak going into the top-of-the-table clash, the result of which would decide who was top seed for the play-offs and winner of the first trophy of the 2024/25 senior season.

Wolves opened strong with Viktor Capkanovski hitting a quick five points in the first minute courtesy of a swish three and aggressive drive, while Harry Brindle extended the lead to seven.

Jets initially struggled to create against an active man defence and it wasn’t until the third minute that Jake Glover and Pete Boussougou found routes to the hoop to get them started.

Wolves kept their momentum going though, Capkanovski leading the charge and joined by Oscar Lace and Ben Takken, the latter posting up to extract foul free-throws from the Jets defence.

At the end of the first quarter the scoreline confounded most expectations, Wolves in the lead 20-11.

Lace and Capkanovski opened the second with some nice shots for Wolves, more effective ball movement creating opportunities out of the Jets defence, but it was Jets who had a better run as the quarter wore on.

Strong inside play and shooting saw Paul Kilic join Boussougou on the scoresheet, both picking up foul free-throws and Kilic going 100 percent from the line for the game.

The push initially caught Wolves offguard but a response was quickly marshalled as Ross Wilson stepped on the court, his first appearance for several weeks, and joined Takken and Capkanovski in extending the lead to double digits.

The final minute continued the to-and-fro of the quarter as Jets again chipped away at Wolves, Glover joined by big man Mattie Jennings who had the final basket of the half. Wolves were still in control though with a nine-point lead, 32-23.

Jets hit major turbulence during the third quarter as Wolves’ Cameron Scott dominated inside boards, while Capkanovski made a series of steals and Wilson splashed a string of three-pointers.

Coupled with an aggressive defence that denied Jets’ offence for most of the quarter, the run supercharged Wolves’ lead to 20 points and left Jets frustrated for most of the quarter.

Engines restarted in the final two minutes as a late three-pointer by Tom Dalton-Brown and a mid-range from Boussougou gave Jets their only points of the quarter. They were matched on the return by Scott and Wilson though and at the end of the third Wolves had a commanding 19-point lead, 47-28.

Afterburners were fired to open the final quarter as Dalton-Brown, Boussougou and Baker all made inroads into the Wolves defence with some nice drives and pull-up shots, pulling the game back within 12 points.

The early momentum didn’t last though as Wolves’ defence adjusted and closed off scoring opportunities. What followed was a battle of wills as both teams worked hard on the defensive end of the floor and scoring dried up for most of the remainder of the game.

Holding the lead this played into Wolves’ hands and they ran down the clock on each offence, putting Jets under time pressure as they chased the deficit. Again, a flurry in the final few minutes, this time by Glover and Kilic, gave Jets some momentum but it was too little too late.

With the final buzzer Wolves had completed their turnaround, avenged their earlier loss to Jets and claimed the first trophy of the 2024/25 season, topping the table with a 58-47 grounding of Jets.

- The second game of the evening saw another hard-fought contest between Cannons and Pirates, a must-win game for both teams with hopes of improving their final positioning and play-off seeding.

Pirates sailed into an early lead with solid shooting from Lance Davidas and aggressive drives by Wig Bregazzi and Mikey Brereton drawing foul free-throws.

The setback did little to dampen Cannons’ spirits though and they were soon neck and neck through a combination of the swish outside shooting from point Oliver Hamilton and the quick drives and mid-ranges from combo guard Jack Wilkinson and forward Raf Turla.

The game stayed close throughout the first half and Cannons ahead by a single point at half-time 33-32.

The second half was a similar affair as both teams did a solid job of moving the ball and creating opportunities, matching each other’s pace on the offensive end of the floor.

Cannons’ offence fell into outside shooting mode for part of the third, bringing the ball down the court for a quick three-pointer which opened plenty of chances for Pirates on the rebound and return, Davidas dominating the scoring that started to give them an edge.

Adjustments settled the offence for Cannons into a more balanced affair and the big breakthrough came in the fourth when good movement coupled with pin-point outside shooting from Hamilton, Dylan Evans, Evan O’Dea and Sam Williams launched them ahead and sealed the game, 87-60 to Cannons.

The final game of the evening saw Cavaliers triumph over Ravens in a game that was close until the final quarter.

Ravens fought hard to keep the game within a single point until the fourth when Phil Evans and Chris Wolfendale came alive for Cavs, dominating the scoring and powering them to a 78-61 lead at full-time.

- The league now goes on a two-week Easter break, with no games scheduled until Thursday, April 24.

As top seed Wolves will get an automatic bye to the second round of the play-off finals, with other teams fighting it out in a do-or-die contest for the coveted Championship title.

First to take to the floor will be Jets and Hoops, scheduled to tip off at 7pm. Then at 8.30pm Cavaliers will play Pirates while Ravens will face rivals Cannons. All games are held in the NSC Main Hall with courtside seating available for spectators.

MARTIN DUNNE