Reading Rockets 101 v Team Newcastle University 82
By Jamie King
A Mothers-Day matchup with Team Newcastle University awaited the Rockets on Sunday afternoon in what would be the Rockets’ final game at Rivermead Leisure Centre after 25 years of fixtures there. With the Rockets already poised to face the first-seed Team Solent Kestrels in the playoffs, this matchup offered Reading a chance to continue their strong form and build momentum ahead of the postseason – a chance that they took with style, putting on a great show in front of a lively Rivermead crowd and earning a commanding 101-82 victory.
The contrast between Reading’s dynamic slashing and interior size and Newcastle’s guard-driven offense made for an interesting tactical battle which the Rockets got the better of early, scoring twice inside to open the game after Meshack Lufile won the tip. Newcastle got on the board through a Ryan Federici three before their sole big man Cork showed his shooting touch to knock down a midrange shot. Reading’s offense faded as the two sides settled into the game, but their defensive effort – highlighted by an instinctive Reis Pinnock steal on a pass into the paint – prevented their opponents from putting together a decisive run. Sam Toluwase rekindled the offense with a powerful slam after receiving the ball in the dunker’s spot and scored again soon after, absorbing a lot of contact down low to score and earn an and-one which put Reading ahead 11-10. Toluwase concluded a personal eight-point run with a three after Newcastle’s Moya scored one of his own and the Rockets returned to the paint for their next score as their patient passing opened up a drive and assist for Pinnock to Lufile. Meshack scored off an offensive board on the next play and then pivoted inside for a layup soon after, briefly earning the Rockets the lead before Moya struck from deep again to close out the quarter 21-20 to Newcastle.
Having found success in the paint during the first quarter, the Rockets leant into their interior advantage heavily during the second and backed it up with excellent defense early in the period. Newcastle were kept out of the paint thanks to great communication and effort from Reis Pinnock in particular, who followed up an early Cartaino three with a brilliant stop on Moya. Jaz Bains jumped the passing lane for a steal and layup before Meshack added one of his many highlight plays, coming across the lane and powerfully rejecting a Newcastle layup. Cartaino continued to add points, capping a 10-0 run for Reading with a smooth jumpshot. Moya finally broke down the defense to open up a corner three for Cork, but Newcastle struggled to turn the tide against the Rockets as the quarter wore on. The Rockets continued to get stops and punished Newcastle in transition while Meshack dominated the paint on both ends. Cartaino, with a few tough makes under his belt, showed off his handle and scored a long two-pointer.
With the score at 38-27, Reading’s physical advantage seemed to be overwhelming Newcastle and a series of plays late in the second fully showcased the athleticism of Coach Pearson’s team. Toluwase span for the lane for a powerful finish and the Rockets moved the ball well on the next play, finding Cartaino open in the corner. He blew by the closeout and flew to the rim for a huge baseline dunk, but Reis Pinnock immediately stole his thunder with an incredible block at the other end, hanging in the air as he chased down a layup and swatting it out of the sky. Down by 17 at one point, Newcastle desperately needed to find scoring touch and at last they did, scoring four buckets and punishing Reading in transition. Meshack’s size and Cartaino’s shotmaking maintained a healthy advantage, however, and an inbounds alley-oop for Meshack would have closed out the half if not for a brilliant three-pointer by Ryan Federici which beat the buzzer and saw Reading’s lead shaved to 50-40 at halftime.
The Rockets started the third with the three headed monster of Pinnock, Cartaino and Lufile continuing their stellar play and each scoring early, but Newcastle began to assert themselves with a fast pace and strong shooting. The score ballooned to 59-48, with both teams passing well and another highlight dunk courtesy of Tyler Cartaino’s clever backdoor cut and slam. Cartaino added another offensive rebound and found Jaz Bains who scythed through the lane for a layup, but Newcastle would soon ramp up their scoring again. Federici and Moya both broke out moments of excellent guard play, scoring in the flow of the offense but also finding some success in isolation and inside scores from Toluwase and Cartaino weren’t enough to hold off a sudden flurry of Newcastle threes. Newcastle’s shooting drew the Rockets out of the paint and they made the most of the space, breaking down the defense and finding the open man. Ending the period on a 13-4 run put Newcastle up by two going to the third, erasing Reading’s second quarter success and setting the stage for a close finish at Rivermead.
The Rockets, however, had other ideas. Bains and Lewis Champion, who had both struggled to make shots during the game, each scored early before Cartaino added a wing three. Meshack provided one of the highlights of the game with a brilliant close out and leaping block on a corner three, reminding Newcastle of the defensive talent Reading had showed earlier on and forcing a shot clock violation. Cartaino made a layup and Meshack a jumpshot from the elbow to round off a 12-0 run and seize control of the game. Federici broke Newcastle’s scoring duck, but Meshack and Pinnock continued to work on the offensive boards and earned easy points by getting to the free throw line for an 81-72 lead. Yet another thrilling dunk by Cartaino, assisted by Meshack, continued the Rockets’ strong inside scoring and Newcastle’s lack of authority in the paint proved fatal in the fourth. Jaz Bains and Meshack both scored inside through cuts to the basket and free throws and the Rockets went into the final three minutes with a 14-point advantage. The Rockets didn’t let up, however, and capped off a dominant display with a pair of Toluwase dunks in the dying minutes. Reis Pinnock got himself one last layup with the last play, earning himself a triple-double and pushing the Rockets to triple-digit scoring to give Rivermead a memorable send-off and a 101-82 victory.
Reading’s dominance was rooted in their defense all night, with great energy and brilliant individual performances across the board. Big man Meshack Lufile was on top form, producing 33pts and 15reb, and Reis Pinnock’s 10pts, 12reb, 10ast night may even undersell just how well he played given his remarkable defensive work. Sam Toluwase was fantastic off the bench, capitalising on Newcastle’s lack of physicality inside and providing the crowd with some memorable dunks on his way to an 18-point showing. And not to mention Cartaino, whose 26pt double-double would, in any other match, be the performance of the evening! Despite Reading’s shooting struggles, managing just 19% from three, tonight showed the ability of this squad to earn wins by playing hard, defending well and winning the physical battles on the boards and in the paint. With the Team Solent Kestrels waiting in the playoffs, this victory was perhaps the perfect way to close out the regular season and say farewell to Rivermead one last time.