Worcester Wolves put up a spirited fight against the unbeaten Bristol Academy Flyers.

Worcester Wolves will enter 2025 with hopes of better times ahead as they defied their 2-8 win-loss record to hang close with unbeaten Bristol Academy Flyers on Saturday.

Wolves led 36-33 at half-time and held onto a chance of success through to the last few minutes of the contest before their hosts were able to pull away to a 74-64 final score-line and their 11th victory of the year.

Wilfrid Santhe was in electrifying early form.

Two three-pointers, a series of drives to the hoop, and converting bonus free throws as defenders struggled to contain him saw the Worcester point-guard sweep to 17 points and edge his side into a 21-20 first-quarter advantage.

Santhe intercepted a loose Bristol pass to set up Emmanuel Yeboah’s first points on his return to the court after a number of weeks out through injury.

James Davis put back a Finn Rennie miss, and the latter then benefited from Jeremy Lievin fighting for a rebound as Wolves pulsed to their interval lead.

However, 11 unanswered points soon saw Flyers glide 44-36 ahead by midway through the third period but a Jacob Dearman triple slowed the onslaught.

An aggressive Davis stood in the thick of the action, battling to the basket for consecutive scores and then rising up with a thundering two-handed slam that drew an urgent Bristol timeout with the teams tied at 46 all.

Worcester still clung to the coat-tails of their high-flying opponents to trail 53-49 entering the last quarter.

A couple of long-range shots from Santhe and Yeboah kept the pot boiling until the home side eventually made it over the finish line in front.

Santhe dominated the scorers with 26 points.

Davis supplied 11 points while Yeboah and Rennie both contributed 10.

Wolves will return to the University of Worcester Arena on Saturday, January 4, at 7pm when they take on another West Country outfit, Bristol Basketball United.

Wolves currently sit 10th in the NBL Division 2 North.