All eyes will be fixed on the WBBL Trophy again this weekend and not least on tonight’s match-up between Barking Abbey Crusaders and Oaklands Wolves which will be beamed around the world via BBC Sport.
Still with only a solitary WBBL Cup success during their rookie season, Wolves are slowly but surely edging towards where they need to be.
Meanwhile head coach Kenrick Liburd is preparing to go back up against the club where he was Assistant Coach, which means the big game on BBC Sport is going to be a memorable one for the play-caller.
He said: “I was actually a student at Barking Abbey prior to them having a Basketball Academy, so yes, it is a special occasion for me.
“I have a lot respect for what they do at Abbey, while Mark [Clark] is a friend and a mentor, He has a great programme and continues to do so much to impact British basketball in a positive way. I learned a great deal about British basketball from my time as an assistant there.
“However, what is really special, is taking part in another clash that involves some of the best young female talent we have to offer; from two of the top basketball academies in the country, playing at the highest level and on one of the biggest stages.
“We are still growing as a young team, learning more about ourselves daily and this will be another good test.”
“I think we have played out two very competitive games against them already this season,” continued Liburd.
Two frustrating 3pt losses, a number of lessons learned, one week of hard work. @Oaklandsball @WBBLofficial excited for the next challenge. pic.twitter.com/BMCHCyk4Fn
— kenrick liburd (@liburdk) January 25, 2017
“I think for us, it will be important to be ourselves, do the things we work on all the time and try to enforce our will and our style of play on the game.
“There will be lots of young talent on display again and both previous games saw lead changes and momentum swings, making for exciting contests.
“We felt like we did a better job competing late on in the second game, where we put ourselves in a position to win on the road.”
As well as being able to watch this weekend’s WBBL Trophy opener on BBC Sport, the BBC Sport App and on Connected TV, there are other WBBL Trophy games taking place across the weekend.
There are three match-ups on Saturday as Leicester Riders look to bounce back from their Trophy loss at home to Suns when they head to Cardiff Met Archers. Caledonia Pride face a daunting visit to an in-form Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters and Team Northumbria head to Manchester Mystics.