Basketball: Kings seek to salvage pride

GUILDFORD KINGS are now being paid out of the gate money after games at the Spectrum Arena. So, after a season of virtual non-payment, their coach, Kevin Cadle, hopes his players can focus on salvaging some competitive pride in the Budweiser Championship play-offs at Wembley Arena at the end of April, writes Duncan Hooper.

Their first hurdle is to qualify from the quarter-finals which come at the end of the current league programme. They struck a psychological blow this week by beating Birmingham Bullets 87-80. Cadle said: 'We played hard and it was a breath of fresh air to see the players competing again.' Thames Valley's first league

title came closer with London Tower's 69-65 win over Manchester on Thursday in their first game at the Wembley Court.