ESSEX Rebels men’s basketball team can clinch the National Championship title for the first time, this weekend.

They sit proudly at the top of National Basketball League (NBL) division one, ahead of the final weekend of the regular season.

Rebels visit fifth-placed Newcastle University on Saturday and need to win and then hope that third-placed Derby Trailblazers slip up in one of their two fixtures this weekend against ninth-placed City of Birmingham Rockets on Saturday or seventh-placed Bradford Dragons on Sunday.

There is everything to play for this weekend with Essex Rebels already sure to secure their highest-ever finish after incredible displays all season including last weekend’s stunning victory against title contenders Hemel Storm at the Essex Sport Arena on the Colchester Campus.

The Essex Rebels have also already won a home draw in the NBL Play-offs thanks to a guaranteed top-four finish.

Gazette:

The Division One Play-off quarter-final will be held on Saturday, April 13 at 6.30pm, at the Essex Sport Arena.

Tickets are available on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nbl-d1-playoff-quarterfinal-essex-rebels-vs-tbd-tickets-875992877277?aff=oddtdtcreator Director of Sport Dave Parry said: “Going into the final weekend with a chance of being national division one champions is amazing."

Coach Ross Norfolk and his team have been inspirational this year and the progress they have made as a team is remarkable.

"They have been thrilling our supporters at the Essex Sport Arena this year and the number of wins they’ve secured is over double our previous record at this level.

"That shows how special this team is and we hope all that hard work pays off, this weekend.”

Essex Rebels are full of incredible basketball talent, including last week's Rebound NBL Player of the Week, Luke Busumbru, following his performance against Hemel Storm.

The team is a mix of experienced basketball players such as Victor Olarerin and student talent.

The success of Essex Rebels men this year helps further build on Essex’s growing reputation as one of the strongest universities for sport in the region.

This year also saw Essex Rebels women progress to the Betty Codona National Trophy Final and earn a place in the end of season play-offs.

Meanwhile, the men’s and women’s volleyball teams have progressed to the climax of the national league season at the national Final 4 weekend.

Essex Rebels men’s basketball players come from several different departments.

Luke Busumbru, Ebuka Ekwegh, Kyron Martin, Zain Poorman and Tyreese Hudson are students in the School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences; Connor Nelson, Trey Chapman and Ben Winter are students in Essex Business School; Riccardo Massafra is in the Department of Sociology and TJ Hibbert is in Essex Pathways.